Already Gone
by FigSk8ingAngel
Summary: Everybody deserves a happy ending...it's just getting there that's the challenge! Follow Jacob's pack as they face heartbreak, new love, old enemies, and much more. All the while finding out who they really are, as well as who they really love. Post-BD
1. Chapter 1:Growing Up

**Summary: **

**Everybody deserves a happy ending...it's just getting there that's the challenge.**

**This is the continuing story of the World of Twilight. It takes place about five and a half years post Breaking Dawn and centers around the lives of Jacob's Wolf Pack, (Embry, Quil, Leah, Seth, and Jake) and their imprints/love interests. Nothing is ever easy, especially falling in love. The pack will face heartbreak, new love, old enemies, and much more. All the while finding out who they really are, as well as who they really love.**

**The title is based off the song "Already Gone" by Sugarland. The lyrics perfectly describe what I always imagined it would be like for a wolf to fall in love/imprint.**

**AN: This is my first Fanfic story I have ever published. I LOVED the Twilight books but I was sad that not everyone(Especially Jacob and Renesmee) got their happy endings. So I decided to write them my self! :-) **

**A HUGE Thank you goes out to Critiquelle who so kindly Beta read for me and also gave me the confidence to finally hit the "post" button! :-)  
**

**I don't own any of the Twilight characters/settings...just borrowing them! No copyright infringement intended!**

**So without further interruption I present to you Chapter 1 of "Already Gone"...**

**AN #2: Edited version posted 4/30. Thank you Project Team Beta (Specifically "thalia_csiny" and "JillM12") Apparently I don't know how to use a comma...thank goodness for Betas to edit! :-)**

**AN #3: Last one, I promise! My story got accepted to Twilighted! If you don't know what that is, it's another site to post Twilight fanfics on...but the catch is that they have a validation process, and they are kind of strict on what they accept.(I was rejected the first time I tried). So long story short I re-edited Chapter One again. This IS the final version through...I promise! :-)  
**

Chapter One: Renesmee: Growing Up

_Renesmee_

My family and I were sitting in the living room of my parents' cottage discussing the details of the day. I was curled up on the couch, listening to my mother tell my father about how Aunt Alice had made her buy three new outfits on our shopping trip that afternoon. As she was describing her irritation with my aunt's shopping habits, she happened to mention the fact that we had run into an old classmate of theirs, Jessica Stanley, in one of the stores.

My normally calm father suddenly tensed up. "She didn't see you, did she?"

"She did. I didn't think she would have recognized me, but then she called my name." My father stopped breathing. "But don't worry! She was oblivious to the fact that I haven't changed in six years, and she didn't see Renesmee. Typical Jessica. It was a close call, but I think we dodged exposure in that one, and most importantly our daughter is still safe." My father started breathing again. I didn't need to have his gift of mind reading to know what he was thinking…_our daughter is still safe because our secret was not exposed._

Secrets have always been a big part of my life; starting from birth, everything about me had to be kept a secret. After all, I was the natural-born daughter of a vampire and a human; I had werewolves for friends, and vampires as family. And that just skimmed the surface.

Like any other child, I got half of my genes from each parent. But my genetics were a little different, since my mother was human and my father was a vampire when they conceived me. There are only a few of us in existence and because of this, I have spent my life being sheltered from the outside world.

Before I was even a year old, my parents had faced the Volturi, an ancient coven of vampires who were convinced that I was a threat to them. My family had been prepared to fight for my life, but luckly, due to some quick thinking by my Aunt Alice, and a visit form another half-vampire named Nahuel, the battle never happened. This was the first of many things I would need to be "protected" from. I hadn't grown at a normal rate, and that had only added to my parents' fears. My half-vampire genes made me grow faster and learn quicker than any human child would have, which made it impossible for me to ever have stepped foot in a normal school, so I had been home-schooled by my family for the entirety of my education. Each member had specialized in a specific subject matter.

At first, it was only the basics: English taught by Grandma Esme, science with Grandpa Carlisle, history with Uncle Jasper, and math with Aunt Alice. After only a year, I had surpassed what most sixth graders knew, and I was only two. The basics were then expanded to specifics: biology, chemistry, American history, algebra, and geography were just a few of the expansions. Then other challenges were added to my curriculum: fine arts with Aunt Rosalie and Grandma Esme. My mother took over English and literature since she had such a love for the subject, then foreign languages with my father, and even phys ed with Uncle Emmett. I didn't really need phys ed; I was just as invincible as the rest of my vampire family, but it added some fun in, and that made it one of my favorite classes.

I loved school and learning new things but it seemed like nothing ever challenged my enough. By the time I was four, I could have easily enrolled in college and passed my freshman year with flying colors, but college would have taken me away from home and the protection of my family, and as always, that was out of the question.

Even with the constant introductions to new subjects and exciting field trips to countries like France and Spain, though, I longed to have normal life and to get to enjoy things that normal kids did. My family didn't understand that. The only one who did was my best friend Jacob.

Jacob Black had been my best friend for as long as I could remember. Which, really, with my gift of perfect memory, was from birth. Jacob always had a way of distracting me, and pulling me away from my everyday, sheltered life. He regularly helped me escape the watchful eye of my parents, sneaking me away to hang out with his pack brothers and their girlfriends, or as I liked to call them, the wolf girls. I've always been thankful for my friendship with Jake and his pack; without them, I sometimes wondered if I would have had any real friends at all. Jacob made me feel safe, but not overprotected like my parents always did. He was like the older brother I never had, strong and caring, but he still knew how to tease me and make me laugh. He made me smile when nothing else could.

I still loved my parents, even through they were constantly looking over my shoulder. I knew the reasons they were so protective. I was the perfect mix between my mother and father. With my mother's human brown eyes and my father's bronze hair and beautiful vampire looks, anyone who knew them previously would know I had to be related. This posed quite the dilemma when I grew up in the same small town where both of my parents lived and attended high school in only five years prior.

My family had discussed moving several times – going somewhere away from Forks where I would not be as easily recognized, and my family could start over and not have to worry about the fact that people had started noticing how young they still looked. At one point, my family had gone as far as putting an offer on a new house. I remember how excited Aunt Alice was about decorating it, but then when the offer came back, my family declined it and the decision was made to stay in Washington. No one ever told me exactly why we stayed, but I knew it had something to do with Jacob. I had overheard him arguing with my parents one night after they all thought I was asleep. I didn't catch the whole thing, but the little bit I did catch was that he was going to be whereever we were, and as a result if we left he and his pack were going with us. My parents argued that it would be a bad idea to take the pack away from their friends and family, but Jake was putting his foot down on this one. He must have won the argument, because next morning my parents told me we weren't moving.

Things were easy at first. My parents and their siblings all stayed out of sight, putting out the story that they were away at college. Grandpa Carlisle switched hospitals so that he could begin a new job posing as a younger man, and we moved to a more secluded house about twenty miles outside of Forks. It was just far enough away from town, and just deep enough into the forest, that no one really noticed we were there. It was a lot closer to the reservation too, which made Jacob happy, because he didn't have to run as far when he came to visit. Even if we needed to go into town, which we only did to visit my Grandpa Charlie, all my parent's "friends" were off at college, so there wasn't much of a chance of any of us running into anyone they knew. But once enough time had passed, old familiar faces began to pop up again. That had both of my parents more worried than ever, which in turn, had me more annoyed than ever.

My father had relaxed, but only slightly. My mother on the other hand, was even more wound up than before. She knew how "close calls" upset my father. "Maybe we should tell Alice that if she wants to take Renesmee shopping, it would need to be out of this direct area. No closer than…Portland. Just to make sure we don't have any more little incidents," she suggested

My father brightened at the suggestion until he caught my frustrated thoughts.

"Renesmee, you know we only want to protect you. Please don't be upset with us for only wanting the best for you." My father looked at me with the same gentle look that he used when I got upset as a little girl.

Lately, every discussion I had with my parents ended up on this subject, and the argument was always the same. I knew they still thought of me as a child, and even though I knew would always be their little girl, I no longer thought of myself as the child that they still saw. Sure, I was only five _natural_ years old, but with my advanced growth, I had easily reached my teenage years. And sometimes my attitude really showed it!

"Dad, we've gone over this a million times!" I let out a long sigh and sat up on the couch. "You don't have to worry about me! I know how to keep out of sight and out of trouble. And if for whatever reason someone _does_ see me or recognize me, I have my cover completely memorized!" My parents had thought it was a good idea to come up with a fake identity for me, just in case.

I rolled my eyes and recited my "story" out loud. "My name is Renesmee Wolfe. I am the newest adopted daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Cullen. They adopted me after my parents, Daniel and Abigail Wolfe, died in a car accident a little over a year ago. My family knew the Cullens when they lived in Alaska. My mother worked with Dr. Cullen, and our families were very close. It was my mother's dying wish that Dr. Cullen take me in, since I have no living relatives of my own. They are now the only family I know." I looked directly at my father. "I'm not a kid anymore, Dad! So please, stop treating me like one!"

I had been so caught up in my rant, I hadn't even noticed Jacob walk in. His deep voice made me jump. "Hey, kid! What's up?"

My father smiled at Jake's greeting, and my mother held in a laugh.

I glared in his direction. "You know, you are not making this _any_ easier here, Jacob."

Jacob plopped himself on the couch next to me and gave my parents a confused look.

"Nessie was just arguing about how grown up she has become," my mother explained.

"Sorry, Ness! Wrong time for that greeting, I guess." I smiled back at his sheepish look. I could never stay mad at Jake for long.

"Speaking of aging, how did your growth appointment with Carlisle go?"

Grandpa Carlisle had been keeping track of my aging process since my birth. At first, my growth was so accelerated that he took daily measurements to determine my age. As my growth began to slow, he took measurements further apart, and now he only required me to get measured once a month.

"It went well. He thinks I have almost topped out as far as height goes; I only gained a quarter inch since last month. I guess that makes sense, though, seeing as human girls stop growing at about 18, which is how old Carlisle believes I am now," I looked directly at my dad when I said this. I hoped I made my point. "He said now my body will just mature in other ways until I reach my full maturity in about a year." As I said this, I saw Jacob glance over my whole body and then quickly divert his eyes. I felt a blush hit my cheeks as I realized what I had just said out loud, as well as what Jacob's response to it was. I was pretty sure I just caught him checking me out.

After hearing my thoughts, my father let out a low growl and glared in Jake's direction. Lately, my father had not been a big fan of Jacob, especially when I was around. I asked my mother about it once; she avoided the question and told me I would eventually find out why. To this day, I still didn't know what _that _was supposed to mean.

"_Dad…lay off. He may be a boy, but he's just a friend." _I warned with my thoughts.

"A _hormonal_ boy." My dad was mumbling to himself, but he knew I could still hear him. I got the vampire hearing from him too.

I rolled my eyes for about the hundredth time that night and looked over at Jake, who suddenly looked a lot less comfortable. He had probably heard my father as well; super hearing ran in the wolf's genetics too. I figured now was a good time to get out of the house for a bit. It would let my dad calm down and let Jake get out from under my father's unending glare….poor guy!

"Hey, Jake, weren't the guys planning on meeting up at the meadow tonight since it's Sam's pack's turn for overnights?" I eyed Jacob with my "pretend you know what is going on" look and gave my mother the puppy dog eyes I knew she couldn't resist. "Would it be ok if I tagged along?"

Of course, my father, who could read all of my thoughts and probably knew I was lying, would be the one to try to put a stop to me leaving. "Renesmee, it's getting late. I don't like you out past dark alone. Especially when the wolves are involved."

My father had added the last part under his breath. He didn't think it was safe for me to always be hanging out with the wolves, something about the possibility of one of them phasing suddenly and hurting me. I personally didn't see the issue; Jacob would never lose control around me and he would literally kill any member of his pack, or the other pack for that matter, if they ever hurt me.

"Edward," my mother warned, "just let them go! Jacob will keep her safe, as always. And I think Nessie might have a point. We need to start trusting her a little more. As much as I hate to admit it, she's growing up." My mother was obviously much more convinced of my safety, both in general as well as around the wolves. I was slightly shocked to hear the last part…maybe I had finally started to get through to them.

My father sighed but nodded his head. "Alright, Nessie, go ahead. Just not too late, okay?"

I gave my father a quick nod and jumped up, heading for the door before he could change his mind. Jacob was only seconds behind me. "Race ya!" he whispered as he passed me on the way out.

I smiled at the challenge, and seconds later, the wind hit me, and I was free.

**AN:Please let me know what you think by reviewing. ALL comments are greatly appreciated and I will respond individually to them all! :-)**


	2. Chapter 2:The Truth Hurts

**AN:**

**Wow! I am pleasantly surprised at the number of hits Chapter 1 got! :-) Thanks to everyone that added it to your alert list! Makes me happy to know people want to read more! So my goal is to post a chapter a week...but I am writing ahead so if I get enough reviews(hint hint) I just might post the next chapter early!**

**Again thank you to my amazing Beta reader Critiquelle! :-)**

**Enjoy Chapter two...**

**AN 2: Edited Chapter Posted 5/11/10. Thank you to Project Team Beta and their amazing Beta readers! (Specifically justaskalice and imcarriej) Thanks to their comments this chapter went through a major re-write...but I think you will like it so much better now! I know I do! :-)**

**AN 3: Re-edited to match Twilighted 9/14/10 :-)  
**

Chapter Two: Jacob: The Truth Hurts

_Jacob_

I raced out of the cottage door and into the forest, phasing as I went. Racing Nessie had become an almost daily event, so I had pretty much perfected the phase and run routine. Shorts off, tie them to the leg, phase, and go! My record was about 10 seconds. Almost immediately after I phased, thoughts filled my head.

"_Ten bucks says she beats him again."_

Embry and Quil were on patrol. Embry would use any excuse to try to win money off of the other guys in the pack.

"_You think I'm that stupid? When was the last time Jake even came _close_ to beating Ness?"_

"_Gee, thanks for your confidence guys! And for your information, I beat her last week." _The memory flashed through my mind; I knew they could see it too.

"_Yeah…you only won because Emmett told you a shortcut, and Jasper distracted her. Which reminds me, he _still_ owes me that ten dollars. Cheating was NOT part of the bet." _Embry was not very happy that Emmett had tricked him.

"_What's the plan tonight? Want some company?" _Quil asked. "_Embry and I switch out patrol with Sam's pack in about ten minutes."_

Hanging out with the guys was always a blast, and I knew Ness wouldn't mind if they tagged along, but that night I had other plans in mind.

"_Oh…you want to be _alone,"Embry had seen my thoughts.

Sometimes, having the pack mind-link was great. After all, when you turn into a huge wolf, how else are you going to communicate? Other times, I wished I could just get my brothers out of my head. This was one of those times.

Renesmee and I had a special bond, something that connected us intensely. When she was a baby, very shortly after her birth, I had set out to kill her for what she had done to her mother, "My Bella." But the minute I laid eyes on her, everything changed. My heart was filled with a burning that warmed my whole body from the inside out. Suddenly the things that used to mean something to me were all cut away one by one; my pack loyalties, my love for her mother, even myself, none of it mattered any more. All that mattered was the girl directly in front of me. It felt like a million steel cables pulled me toward her. My gravity changed; she became my sun and I was her planet. This was the power of imprinting.

I had always loved her; it was just the way that I loved her that had recently started to change. Up until a few months ago, I loved Renesmee, or Nessie as I liked to call her, like a sister, and I played the part of protective older brother very well. Nothing would ever hurt her; not while I was around, anyway. But as I watched her grow up, the pull of the imprint changed. I no longer saw Nessie as the little sister she always had been; I began to see her as the beautiful woman she was becoming.

I can't say I didn't expect it. I had seen first hand how imprints worked, but it did surprise me how soon it happened. I first noticed the change shortly after her fifth birthday. Alice had given her a new dress and she was showing it off for me and her family. As she walked down the stairs, I felt my heart skip a beat, and I got that butterfly feeling in my stomach...it was the same feeling I used to get from being around her mother. I couldn't help but think, "_Wow! She looks beautiful!_"

Minutes later, after she had gone back upstairs, I received a warning from Edward, who once again was invading my thoughts. After the whole Bella incident, Edward and I had reached a truce, we had even become friends. Well, almost friends anyway. I say almost, because a lot of the time his trust only reached as far as his mind reading ability. This was especially the case with Renesmee. This warning was not one I would easily forget. He had strongly reminded me that although he tolerated my presence because of the imprint bond, Renesmee was his _only_ daughter. At the time, she was physically about sixteen, and therefore in Edward's mind still very much off limits. He also felt it necessary to let me know that he would be "watching me." If I so much as hugged Ness with inappropriate motives, he would not hesitate to take matters into his own hands. Both of Edward's brothers, Emmett and Jasper, backed him up by also threatening to beat me to within an inch of my life if I decided to make a move on their niece.

The only one who seemed to be on my side was Carlisle. He reminded his sons that they all knew this change was going to happen at some point, and that each one of them had at one point fallen in love. He knew it was something that couldn't be stopped, but even he was still concerned about her age. We came to compromise; I would hold back my feelings until Renesmee was mature enough to reciprocate them. In other words, she was going to have to be the one to make the first move.

I had kept it together since then, keeping my thoughts clean and my actions pure, especially around Edward, but it was getting harder and harder to ignore the feeling that was growing inside my heart for Renesmee. I wanted more than ever for her to love me back in the same way, but I didn't know how that would be possible. She didn't even know about the imprint.

This had been the subject of another argument between her family and me. They didn't think Nessie was old enough to understand the bond that had formed between us, and they had forbidden me from telling her about it. At first, I had agreed with them, after all, no normal child would be able to understand the complexity of imprinting.

My pack-mate Quil's imprint, Claire, was a perfect example. Quil had imprinted on Claire when she was only two. Back then she could barely even talk, much less understand the bond between them. Even now, as a rowdy seven-year-old, Claire didn't understand why Quil was willing to do anything for her. At one point, she had asked him why he always wanted to hang out with her and do _girl_ stuff when he could go hang out with the guys instead. He tried to explain it, as best as he could, but in the end it only confused her more, so they just left it as, "because that's what best friends are willing to do for each other."

But Nessie was different, and that changed my opinion on the matter; she was _not_ a normal human child. Renesmee's family wanted her to live a life that felt as normal as possible, and because of that, they tended to base how they treated her off her natural age, not her mental age. I knew it drove Renesmee crazy, especially lately; she wanted to be treated like an adult, and they still wanted to treat her like she was a child. The truth was that she was a lot smarter than they were willing to admit to themselves. She began asking me questions about why I was always there, and why I cared so much for her, before she had even turned two. I wasn't willing to lie to her, but I also was not going to betray her parents' wishes, so I just told her that it was because I loved her and always wanted her to be safe. She was happy with this answer for a while, but recently she had become even more curious than in her younger years.

I decided to discuss the subject with Edward and Bella one night after Renesmee was asleep. I told them how Renesmee had started to ask more questions about our relationship. I also pointed out to Edward that his daughter had started to notice his less than friendly behavior around me. He still wasn't too happy about the fact that I had a thing for Renesmee, and his feelings showed in his behavior. To be honest, I think that might have been what triggered some of the increased curiosity. In the end, they decided it was probably for the best that eventually the truth came out. They wanted to wait for her to be fully mature, which would take at least another year. I argued that if they waited too long, and she figured it out on her own, she wasn't going to be happy with them or me.

It was Bella who finally broke down. She couldn't handle the idea of Renesmee being upset with her, but she also wasn't ready to let go of her little girl. After a long conversation with Edward, they both agreed that Renesmee would be mature enough to hear the truth when she physically turned eighteen, which according to Carlisle was today. They did agree with me on one point; I was the best one to break the news. After all, I _was_ the one who had imprinted on her.

"_So, tonight's the big night huh?"_ Quil's thoughts broke through my own. I was so completely lost in my own thoughts I had forgotten Quil and Embry were still running.

I let out a sigh. _"Quil, I have _no_ idea what I am going to say to her! I thought I would have a few more months to prepare for this!"_

"_Just tell her the truth Jake…it's really the best plan."_

I could see in my mind that Quil was right, but how was I supposed to tell her about the imprint without my emotions getting in the way? I was ready to take our relationship to the next level, but I wasn't sure where she stood with things. The imprint made us perfect for each other, and I was fairly confident that she could never completely reject me; no wolf had ever been rejected by their imprint, why would I be the first? But she _could_ reject taking things further than a friendship, and that made me little nervous to tell her how I felt. I knew one thing for sure, I was not going to do anything that she wasn't ready for. Even if it meant that for now we just stayed friends. I wasn't willing to lose her by pushing my _own _desire for a relationship on her.

About a minute later, I broke through the forest wall and into the meadow; it used to be Edward and Bella's meadow, but Renesmee and I visited here so often that we had made it our own. I didn't see Renesmee anywhere, but I knew she had beaten me. My protective instinct kicked in as I searched the meadow for her. I still hadn't spotted her, and for a split second panic hit me. Then I was surprised by something jumping on my back.

"Beat you again," Renesmee's angelic voice whispered in my ear before she started laughing.

I gave her my best wolfish grin and nudged her off my back, so I could run into the forest and safely phase without her seeing.

"_Good luck, man!" _Embry called out.

"_Remember to just tell her the truth,"_ Quill again offered as last minute advice.

I took a deep breath and felt my body take on its human form as I pulled myself back together. After slipping on my shorts, I headed back to the meadow. I knew I was about to face the hardest thing I had ever done, but for the most part I felt ready.

The minute I saw her smiling face I felt better and yet worse all at the same time.

"So, what's the plan for tonight, Jake?"

"Renesmee, we need to talk…there is something I need to tell you, but I need you to promise you are going to listen to everything I have to say before you react." I took a deep breath, and looked directly into her eyes. _Well here goes nothing…_

**AN: So what did you think? Better than before? Please feel free to review! :-)**


	3. Chapter 3:Imprint on My Heart

Chapter Three: Renesmee and Jacob: Imprint On My Heart

_Renesmee_

"Renesmee, we need to talk…there is something I need to tell you, but I need you to promise you are going to listen to everything I have to say before you react."

I looked up into Jake's eyes as he stared directly at me. His dark eyes didn't sparkle like they did when he was happy, he seemed tense and nervous. Whatever he was going to tell me, it was not going to be good. My mind flew through the possibilities…_he's moving…the pack is breaking up…the tribe elders told him he had to leave me because I'm half vampire…the Volturi are coming back and the wolves won't fight…_I took a breath and braced myself for the worst.

"Ok Jake, I promise I won't say a word until you are done."

Jake took another deep breath and sat down, motioning for me to do the same. Not only was this going to be bad, it looked like it was going to be long.

"Renesmee, do you remember when you were little you asked me why I was always around you, and why I cared so much for you?"

I nodded. "You told me it was because you loved me and always wanted me safe." As I said that, I felt my heart drop slightly. My thoughts were still running wild. _He's going to tell you he can't keep you safe anymore…_

Jacob's slight smile alleviated some of my fears. _If he was trying to smile it couldn't be that bad, right?_

"And I meant every word I said. I love you Renesmee. You are my best friend. There is just a lot more to it that you need to know."

His smile faded as he continued. "The first time I ever laid eyes on you, right after you were born, there was a strong bond that was formed between us. This bond pulls me to you like gravity. It makes you the center of my word, and all I care about is that you are safe and happy. It's called imprinting, and it happens when a wolf finds their soul mate. It's different for each wolf, and not all wolves imprint. Essentially, you become exactly what your other half needs. The imprint grows with time, and changes as the needs of your soul mate change. The best example I can give you of this is in our own relationship. When you were little, I was there to protect you and care for you. As you grew up and learned to take care of yourself, I became more of a brother and friend. I have no doubt that as you mature, and your needs change, my place in your life will also change," Jacob paused and looked up at me. His eyes still looked sad.

"Ness, I am so sorry I never told you about this before; you should have known the truth a long time ago. I know a lot of what I am about to tell you will probably hurt you, but you need to know everything to fully understand this bond. In the end, I hope you can forgive me and know that I always have and always will love you.

Imprinting changed me. It gave me a new reason to live and opened up my heart when I thought it had been lost forever.

There was a time before you were born, when your father left your mother to try to protect her. It was in that time that your mother and I became best friends, and it was also when I fell in love with her. After your father returned, I tried everything I could to make your mother love me back, but she had eyes for only one man. It killed me to see her so devoted to him. She wanted nothing more than to give herself over to him, to become what he was, and when she nearly died giving birth to you, she finally got her wish. As her heart stopped beating, I felt my own die with it. I had lost her. The only emotion I had left was anger, and I chose to direct most of that anger at you. In my eyes, you were the biggest reason it had all come to an end, and I wanted to do nothing more than to destroy the thing that had destroyed my heart."

As I began to process what Jacob was saying, my eyes welled up with tears. How could it have been true? I didn't understand how Jacob, the person who I considered to be my closest friend, could have hated me so much that he wanted to destroy me. It was too much for me to take. I closed my eyes and shook my head, hoping that when I opened them again it would have all been a bad dream. The heat of Jake's hand brushed my cheek, as he reached up and wiped away the few tears that had escaped. He cared about me so much, I knew it killed him to see me in pain. I tried to hold it together long enough to ask the questions that were on my mind.

"What changed, Jake? How did you go from wanting to end my life to loving me?"

I saw the pain leave Jake's eyes as he continued. "My heart changed and it was you who changed it. I set out that night to do exactly what my anger was driving me to do, but when I saw you lying in Rosalie's arms, and our eyes met, it was as if my whole world got flipped around. All of a sudden my heart was beating again, and my life had purpose. It took everything in my power not to tear you out of Rose's arms just so I could hold you in my own. I knew right then and there that I had found my reason for living."

As Jake spoke those last words, the pieces clicked together in my head. The imprint was what made the relationship between me and Jake what it was. It was the reason that he understood me so well, and cared for me like no one else could. It was also the reason I felt drawn to him in a way that had left me feeling empty and alone when he wasn't there. It all seemed perfect…but there was still one thing that made me uncomfortable about it.

Jake had given up love for me, and it was the "magic" of the imprint that made it happen. I thought back to what Jake had told me. He had only mentioned one other person that he had truly fallen in love with, and that was before the imprint. I wondered if his feelings for her were still the same.

"What about my mother? You obviously cared deeply for her…do you still love her?"

"Ness, your mother always has been, and always will be one of my best friends, but I see now that was all we were ever supposed to be. What I lost in her is what I found in you when I imprinted. You're who my heart belongs to now."

My heart dropped at hearing this; it was as if my worst fears had been confirmed. Jacob was literally stuck with me for the rest of his life. He had said that the imprint would change as my needs changed, but what if I never loved him like that? He was my best friend, but as I had pointed out to my dad earlier, he was _just _a friend. If it never changed, would he be able to have a relationship with someone else? And what did that mean for me? I had never really thought about falling in love, other than someday I hoped it would happen. What if I fell for someone other then Jake…could he take the heartbreak I knew it would cause him? The heartbreak I knew _I _would cause him? I couldn't even look him in the eyes as I acknowledged the truth.

"Jake…I don't know what to say. I understand how the imprint works, and I am glad that it brought us together. But I wish it didn't have such a strong hold on you. I don't want to see you miss out on true love because you were stuck with your "best friend" forever. And more than that, I don't want you to end up hating me because I'm the reason you can't find true love."

* * *

_Jacob_

Renesmee's words stung as they set in. She thought I felt trapped by her, that the imprint was holding me back from true love. What she didn't realize was that, in reality, it had brought me true love.

I grabbed her chin in my hand and forced her to look at me.

"Renesmee, don't say things like that. Don't you understand that you are the only one I will ever love?"

As she pulled away, tears began to fall down her cheeks.

"You're only saying that because of the imprint Jake. The magic has you under its spell. But what happens if my feelings for you never change? What happens when all your pack mates and everyone else you know, including me, finds love and you can't because of this…because of me? Can you honestly tell me you won't regret the imprint then?"

She reached her hand out to touch my cheek and images filled my head. Renesmee was using her gift to show me her thoughts. At first the images were of memories from the last few years. Us hanging out at the beach with the pack, hunting with her parents, laughing and having a great time at Charlie and Sue's wedding. Then the images changed. The images were no longer things from the past, they were filled with what Renesmee imagined the future would hold. The first of the new images were all of weddings. In each new image, the faces of the bride and groom changed: Paul and my sister, Embry and a girl I didn't recognize, Quil and Claire. In each one, I could see Nessie and I in the background and each time the way I looked at her changed. In the first, we looked similar to today, we were still laughing and smiling, but by the last, I was glaring with hatred at the girl I loved. Again the image changed. I was watching as Nessie stood across from me with another man at her side. He held her close, and she held up her left hand to show me a diamond ring. "We wanted you to be the first to know Jake…after all, you are my best friend." I gave her a murderous glare. "I'm happy for you Ness…it's good that at least one of us gets to experience true love."

Nessie pulled her hand away and as the images began to fade, her words rang through my head. _"What if my feelings for you never change…after all you are my best friend."_ The image of her with another man came back into my mind. I had always known this might be a possibility; that she could choose to love someone else, without rejecting me all together. But actually hearing her say it, and seeing it with my own eyes, broke my heart.

The reality of just how hard I had fallen hit me. I was totally and completely in love with Renesmee, and at this point she obviously did not feel the same way about me.

I also knew that she blamed herself for the power that the imprint had on me. She thought that I would blame her if I never got to experience the love that all the others would eventually feel.

I knew that I had to stay strong. No matter what, I had to continue to be everything that Renesmee needed me to be. Even if that was just a friend, and even if I thought it was going to kill me.

I reached out and pulled Renesmee into my arms. As her tears hit my bare chest, I spoke softly to her and held her tight in attempt to comfort her.

"Nessie, I will _never_ regret imprinting. More importantly, I will _never, ever_ regret you. No matter what the future brings, as long as you are in my life, in whatever aspect that may be, I will be happy."

Her sobs begin to subside as she finally looked up at me. The look in her eyes told me she knew I was telling the truth.

"Jake, I'm sorry I reacted like this…I know you could never really hate me. I guess I am just at sort of an emotional stage of life right now."

I gave her a half smile and wiped the rest of her tears away. "Well, it's better than the response I was expecting…I thought you would be angry with me."

A small smile appeared on her face as she let out a laugh.

"I don't know if I could ever really be mad at you Jake. However, I am a little upset that no one ever told me about this before."

"I really _am_ sorry about that part. But I wasn't the only one to have a say in it. Your parents wanted to make sure you were ready."

"I sort of guessed that…and trust me, I _will_ be having a long talk with them about it. They need to know that I'm not a little girl anymore, and they _can_ trust me with stuff like this."

She was frustrated with her parents. I didn't blame her, even _I_ got frustrated with the way Edward and Bella treated her sometimes. But I also knew they only wanted the best for her, just like I did.

I also knew that if I didn't get Ness home soon, it wouldn't be long before her family came looking for us. And the last thing I wanted was to have to deal with Edward reading my thoughts about how great it felt to just be holding his daughter. Even if she just wanted friendship, I knew my feelings for her were not about to change.

Letting out a sigh, I loosened my arms from around Nessie's shoulders. "I should probably get you home before your parents send out a search party."

Nessie rolled her eyes, but stood up anyway, then gave me a mischievous grin that could only mean one thing…we were racing again. She took off in a flash, and I knew there was no way I was going to catch up, but I put in a good effort anyway. I quickly phased and ran after her.

When we reached the cottage, I phased back, making sure to stay hidden from Nessie's view. Once I was dressed again, I walked her to the door. She stopped before she walked in and turned to give me a hug. My heartbeat picked up slightly, and I prayed Edward was not within "hearing" range.

"Thanks for telling me the truth tonight Jake…and thanks for not freaking out when I turned into an emotional nut job. You really are the best friend anyone could ever ask for."

"Sure, sure." I smiled back at her as she turned and walked into her parent's cottage.

After she closed the door, I turned to head for home. I had planned on just walking home in human form; I didn't want to risk phasing in case anyone in my pack was still running. They would hear it all eventually, if they hadn't already when I phased a few minutes ago, but I needed time to sort through my _own _thoughts before sharing them with everyone else.

Just as I hit the edge of the road, I heard a howl off in the distance. As the alpha in my pack, I knew every wolf's distinct howl…this one belonged to Leah. I felt my heartbeat pick up again, but this time it was because of fear. Sam's pack was on patrol, so the only reason Leah would be calling was if is there was trouble. I ran for the trees shedding my shorts as I went. The minute I phased, Leah's mind connected with mine.

"_Lee, what's the trouble?"_

"_Jake…It's Seth. I just got off the phone with him…things are not sounding good in Portland. I think he is going to loose it…"_


	4. Chapter 4:Phase Out

**AN:**

**So I decided to post this weeks chapter a day early since tomorrow is Easter and I don't think I will have much of a chance to do it later. **

**This will be the first chapter from a different pack members view...and what better way to kick it off then with Seth! But this is NOT the same Seth from the books...I think you will see what I mean...and I promise it will all make sense later! ;-)**

**Have I mentioned my Beta reader Rocks? Cause she does! :-) Thanks Crit!  
**

**Hope you all enjoy it!**

**AN 2: Edited chapter posted 5/18/10. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Project Team Beta. They rocked this chapter out...I got it back in 3 days! :-) Special thanks to: LaraIsAwkward and Jillm12 who were the amazing Betas that devoted their time to this chapter! :-)**

Chapter Four: Seth: Phase Out

_Seth_

I picked up the phone and dialed the only number I could think of-home. _Please pick up…please pick up…_

"Hello?" It was my sister, Leah. _Thank God!_

"Leah…its Seth…"

"Well if it isn't my long lost brother! You know you should think about calling more often…Mom thinks your dead."

I was not in the mood for my sister's sarcasm. "Look, Leah, I don't really have time for this!" The phone started shaking in my hands as I began to lose my temper. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down. _Ok Seth…hold it together. This is NOT the place to phase!_

My sister's silence on the other end of the line told me she knew I was serious.

"Leah…I think it's happening again."

"What? But I thought you couldn't…" I could hear the surprise and disbelief in her voice.

"I know, Leah! But I have all the symptoms again: the growth spurt, the strength, the fever, and now the shaking. I don't know what triggered it, or why now, but I can guarantee you one thing…I am going to phase."

"Ok. Just hang on Seth. I'm going to get Jake and the pack. We're going to get you through this." I could hear the concern in her voice.

"Thanks, Lee. Just hurry, I don't know how much longer I can make it."

I heard a wolf howl, and a split second later the phone went dead.

I was still feeling panicked, which was not a desired feeling since I was trying to prevent myself from turning into a huge ball of fur in the middle of my apartment. Would I remember what phasing felt like? After all, it had been almost five years since the last time I had done it.

It happened a few months after the "almost war" with the Volturi. I woke up one morning and it was like my wolf genes had been turned off. My body was at a regular temperature, I had normal speed and strength, and I couldn't phase at all. Jake rushed me to Carlisle to be checked out, and that's when it really hit me that something was wrong. Not even being around bloodsuckers set me off.

I wasn't the only one affected, it had happened to every wolf under the age of seventeen. No one knew what to think at first; Jake and Sam looked into every possibility, and I do mean _every_ possibility. I'm pretty sure everyone thought they crossed the line when they called the local vet to ask about diseases that might affect young dogs.

It was Sam who finally found an answer. He was looking into the legends, and found a more detailed version of the wolf legend. Apparently, the wolf gene was only activated in a time of need, and the pack would only contain enough wolves to protect the land. Age also played a factor; in all of the previous generations, the oldest was the first to start phasing. It made sense when we all thought about it. Our fathers never phased because there was no danger. In our generation, Sam, who was by far the oldest, had phased first, followed by Jake, and all the guys who were his age. The younger pack members had only started phasing when there was a greater threat, i.e. more bloodsuckers. Basically, what it came down to, was that after the threat of the Volturi and witnesses disappeared, so did the need for the large number of wolves.

I was fine with it at first; after all, it seemed that eventually there would be a need for more wolves again. Sam's pack had been hit hard; he was back down to the original three. It was wearing him, Paul, and Jarrod out to have to run every night. As a solution the packs decided to start running in alternating shifts. I was sure the minute a stray bloodsucker came into the area things would go back to normal. But that minute never came, or at least not for me.

After a year, and a visit from the Denali Coven, both Colin and Brady started phasing again. This put Sam's pack back up to five, and evened out his patrols. The packs still alternated nights, it just made it so no one had to run two patrols in a row. I figured for sure I would be the next to go, but I still didn't get any of the pre-phase symptoms.

After a few more months of waiting, I gave up. Apparently, there was no _need_ for more wolves in either pack. My old pack tried to be as supportive as possible, but things just weren't the same. They had patrols to run, and imprints to take care of, which left little time to hang out with the ex-wolf. It didn't help that my sister was overprotective, and was always worried about me getting hurt.

The situation had really started to take a toll on me. I wasn't the happy-go-lucky teen I had been a few years before, and I didn't like the person I was turning into. I knew the only way to change my path was to get out of La Push, but a few things still kept me there.

My first issue was that I was still in high school, and I knew there was no way my mom was going to let me get away with dropping out. Luckily, with a little tutoring from the Cullens, and some extra course work in the summer, I was able to skip ahead almost two full years. At sixteen, I was on track to be the youngest graduate in La Push history. The second issue was what was really holding me there.

After my dad died, I became the man of the house. This meant I was in charge of taking care of and protecting, my family, and I wasn't about to leave my mom and Leah alone. For one, they would probably kill each other, and two, I felt like I would be letting my dad down if I left. Thankfully, Charlie Swan stepped in and saved me. He wasn't always the sharpest tool in the shed, but I knew he loved my mom, and I knew he would take care of her in my absence. Shortly after their engagement, which nicely coincided with my graduation, I made plans leave La Push.

I ended up in Portland, where I was currently attending Community College, and working part-time for a local mechanic. The job helped pay for the apartment that Charlie and my Mom had graciously co-signed for.

The fact that I looked about three years older than I really was made it easy to fit in with the college crowd that surrounded me on a daily basis. I had made friends quickly, and I finally felt like things were going back to normal. But, I still felt that a little piece of me was missing.

Then, out of nowhere, about a month ago, I had a massive growth spurt. I shot up about two inches in a matter of weeks. I didn't think much about it at the time, most of the eighteen year-old guys around me were doing the same thing. But then when the strength had kicked in I started to worry. Then a few more weeks passed and nothing new developed, so I passed it all off as paranoia.

The flu was going around campus and pretty much every one of my friends had caught it, so when I woke up this morning feeling like truck hit me, then backed up and hit me again, I figured it was finally my turn. I called in to work and went back to bed. A few hours of tossing and turning later, I knew it was worse than I had thought. I decided to call my friend, Alicia, who happened to be a fourth year med student, for advice.

Alicia took my temperature and the thermometer read 104.2. It didn't take long after that for it all to click into place. I panicked and started shaking, which was a bad reaction since Alicia was standing only a few feet away from me. Luckily, I got a hold of myself and got Alicia to leave, by promising to stay in bed until my fever subsided, and I was feeling better. As soon as she left I called my sister. Now the waiting game had begun…and I wasn't feeling very patient.

My phone buzzed in my hand and Jake's name came up on the caller ID.

"Jake?"

"Seth, you doing ok?" Jake's voice sounded concerned.

"Jake, how fast do you think you can get here? I really don't know how much longer I am going to last." I didn't need an answer. The silence on the other end of the phone was enough for me to know I was going to be doing this on my own. The thought of my pack abandoning me in my greatest time of need made me angry, and I started shaking again.

"So what, you're just going to ditch me? Fine Jake, I see nothing has changed. Sorry I ever called!" I was yelling into the phone.

"Seth, you need to calm down." The alpha command in Jake's voice hit me. I took a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm myself, but the shaking didn't stop.

"No one is going to ditch you. The whole pack is here, and Leah is on her way to you, but not even she is not going to be fast enough to run there in time. I'm going to talk you through this. Are you someplace where it is safe to phase?"

I glanced around my small apartment. "Not really…but there is a park a few blocks away. It's pretty secluded, and has lots of trees so I should be able to stay hidden."

Before Jake could answer, I was out the door and running in the direction of the park. I made sure to grab an extra pair of jeans, figuring I would probably shred the pair I was wearing. The shaking was getting worse; it was only going to be a matter of minutes before I lost it.

Jake gave me a few last minute instructions while I ran. "Once you get there, just let your instincts take over. You've done this before, so it should come back to you naturally. The guys are all in wolf form, so once you phase you should be able to connect with them."

I hit the edge of the park just in time, and threw my phone and extra pair of jeans down by the closest tree. Heat like fire burned through me, and the world seemed to spin around me, making me dizzy. I didn't even have time to tear my clothes off before my body changed shape. When it finally settled, I was standing on four feet instead of two, and could see the sandy brown fur that now covered my body. I threw my head back and let out a howl. Echoing howls could be heard through my still open phone a few feet away, and my pack's voices filled my head.

"_Welcome back, bro! Glad you decided to join us again! By the way Quil, you owe me five more bucks. I told you Leah wouldn't even make it to the state line before he phased."_

"_What? Embry Call…how dare you bet on me! You just wait till I get back there…" _Leah never liked to be subject of a bet, just the winner of them. She had already turned around and was headed back to La Push. The image of what she planned to do flashed through all of our minds.

I smiled to myself. Looked like not much had changed.

Jake brought everyone back to order, _"Leah, knock it off. You know hurting him won't help. How you feeling Seth?"_

"_Great! It's awesome to be back!"_ I felt happier then I had in a long time.

"_Well, you seem happy, so phasing back should be easy. But first I need to ask you, do you know what triggered this? We haven't seen any new bloodsuckers in the area in months, and I haven't seen any evidence of any in Portland recently. So why now?"_

"_I wish I could tell you Jake. You're right about the no evidence thing though, there haven't been any reports of mysterious deaths recently. I can scan the area if you want…just in case." _I was more than ready to get back in on the action.

"_It would be smart to at least have a look around. I'll head up in that direction and we can check it out together."_ I could tell Jake sensed my resentment about needing help. I had gotten used to doing everything on my own. _"It's not that I don't think you could handle it alone, but you have been out for five years, your skills may be a little rusty. Plus, that's what the pack is here for; you don't have to do it alone anymore, Seth."_

Jake's words hit me, and I knew exactly what he meant. I was part of the pack again, part of something that connected me to what I thought I had lost. It gave me purpose again. For the first time in five years, I felt whole.

"_Well, if we are patrolling Portland tomorrow night, I should probably get some rest. I think I remember how to phase back…it's just a matter of pulling yourself back together right?"_

"_You got it kid, just let your human instincts take over again,"_ Jake instructed.

"_Thanks Jake, but one more thing. Mind not calling me kid? Technically, I'm older than you are."_

Jake shook his head and the whole pack laughed. _"Sure, sure, Seth."_

I closed my eyes and allowed my body to be pulled back into its human form. Everything had started spinning again, and seconds later I was standing on two feet. As I pulled on my jeans, another round of howls could be heard coming through my phone. Grabbing my phone off the ground, I smiled to myself. I was back in the game!

**AN: So hope that clears up what I meant at the beginning...Seth just needed a chance to grow up a bit! (He is 18 now if you were wondering). Please Review and let me know what you think! :-)**


	5. Chapter 5:Confessions

**AN: Wow! Another week has gone by...time to update! I am really enjoying writing this story and I really hope you are all enjoying reading it! This chapter will again be in another new point of view...and has some new drama added in!**

**I love my Beta reader! :-)  
**

**and with that...Hope you all enjoy!**

**AN 2: Edited version posted 6/16/10...sorry it's been awhile! Life took over again. Blah! But...this is the last chapter to be edited then it's ALL NEW CHAPTERS! :-) In fact chapter 6 is in the hands of my Beta's now. So hopefully if all goes well I will have a new chapter up by Saturday! Oh and in other exciting news I now have permanent Betas! and I LOVE THEM! So...Thank you JillM12 and justaskalice! You ladies rock my world! :-)  
**

Chapter Five: Embry: Confessions

_E__mbry_

My phone buzzed in my pocket signaling that it was 9pm, time to switch over patrols with Sam's pack. I chose to ignore it and hit the silence button.

Seth gave me a sideways glance and paused the video game we were playing.

"If that was your alarm, I would suggest you take off. You know how impatient Leah gets; better to not make her wait." Apparently, my attempt at being sneaky by putting my phone on vibrate instead of ring was unsuccessful. I guess that was what I got for being in a room full of werewolves with super-hearing.

"It's fine, I set it a few minutes early. I should have just enough time to finish kicking your butt and still make it to the meeting point with time to spare." It wasn't the truth. I was definitely going to be late tonight, but I wanted to delay a few more minutes before running all night with Leah.

I heard Quil laughing behind me. "Come on, man! I know Leah can be bad, and we all dread having to run with her, but you are just asking for trouble by making her wait. Seth's right, take off now, and she'll probably go easy on you tonight."

The truth was, I wasn't dreading running with Leah at all. In fact, I was excited to run with her, and that was the problem. I wasn't ready for her to hear exactly how excited I was; I needed more time to try to collect my thoughts.

Over the last few years, Leah and I had built a new friendship. After Seth left, we were the only two in our pack who hadn't imprinted, so we tended to stick together. After a while, I noticed Leah was more relaxed around me than she was around the rest of the pack. At first, it was mostly when we were running, but soon, even when we weren't in wolf-form, I could make her smile. It was like she was able to let go of some of her frustration and just be herself around me. It made me happy to see her happy, and soon that was all I could think about.

I was really careful to only let myself think about Leah when I wasn't in my wolf-form. I didn't want my pack brothers getting the wrong idea about us. It took Jake catching me off-guard and pointing out the obvious for me to realize that their assumptions would have been correct. I had fallen head over heels for Leah Clearwater.

Shortly after coming to that realization, I got scared. I knew how Leah felt about the "L-word", and at that point I had only admitted I had feelings for her. Heaven forbid I ever admitted I was in love with her. She would probably skin me alive and hang my fur on her wall as a trophy. After what Sam did to her, I wouldn't blame her. Leah didn't trust in love; in her vocabulary, it was a four-letter word.

I decided the best way to handle the situation was to not handle it at all. In other words, I ran as far away, as fast as I possibly could. I begged Jake to switch around the patrols so that Leah and I were on opposing schedules. I also asked him to order me to keep my thoughts off her. Jake refused to use his Alpha command on me; he didn't agree that running away was the answer. After a long talk he did agree to go with my request to switch the patrols. He could tell that I wasn't ready for Leah to hear the truth, but he warned me that it would be better to tell her about my feelings myself, rather than to let her hear it from someone else's thoughts.

My plan of action was to avoid Leah completely. It was pretty easy, especially since we were now on opposing schedules, and the only time I saw her was at pack meetings. I figured that if I stayed away from her, my little crush would fade away. I quickly found out my theory was wrong.

You know how people say absence makes the heart grow fonder? I was living proof of that. You would never know by looking at me, because I acted pretty normal around Leah the few times I did see her, but on the inside I was dying. My heart skipped a beat every time I heard her laugh or saw her smile, and when she was upset or worried, I wanted nothing more than to hold her and let her know it was going to be alright. The more I avoided her, the more I knew I wanted to be more than Leah's friend. The problem was, I still didn't know how to tell her how I felt. So instead I went on living in my self-made misery.

My phone buzzed in my pocket again, this time signaling I had a new text message. I pulled it out and flipped it open.

**Embry, where are you? You have five minutes before I call Jake….**

Seth laughed to himself. "Let me guess, Leah? Told you not to make her wait."

I knew Seth was right. I was in for it now. "Maybe I should let her call Jake. He still thinks it's you running tonight." I gave him a sly smile.

Seth just rolled his eyes. "Nice try! But a bet is a bet, and you definitely lost this one. So don't even try to get out of this." I had, unfortunately, lost a bet to Seth a week ago, and my punishment was running his overnight patrols for a week. No big deal until I found out two of the three were scheduled with Leah.

I sighed and stood up. My five minutes were almost up, and the last thing I wanted was for Jake to get involved. I had gotten really good at hiding my thoughts from the pack, so he was still the only one that knew about my feelings for Leah.

"Well, I guess I'll catch you all later then." I waved a quick goodbye as I headed out the door.

Once outside, I stripped off my shirt and tossed it onto Seth's porch. I took one last minute to collect my thoughts before pulling off my shorts and tying them to my leg.

_Alright, Embry, it's one night. It's no different than when you're running with the guys…except they aren't the object of your affection. _I took another deep breath and felt my body shift as I phased into my wolf form.

"_Well, look who decided to show up! It's about time, Call."_

Seth's assumptions, about Leah's attitude toward me being late, were correct. She only called me by my last name when she was mad.

"_Sorry Lee, lost track of time. Won't happen again, I promise." _I turned and headed for the meeting spot, but Leah's thoughts cut me off.

"_Don't bother. I already met up with Paul and Jared. Nothing new to report, as usual." _

Things had been pretty quiet on the bloodsucker front lately, which had us all a little concerned. We still didn't know why Seth had started phasing again. Portland came up clean, and we hadn't had a single leech come through our area in months. We were all on edge. Even the Cullens thought something might be brewing.

I was trying to catch up with Leah, but she was running faster than usual, probably because she was angry. I decided it might just be easier to meet up at a set point. Leah was Jake's Beta, so I usually let her call the shots when we ran together.

"_So, what's the plan for the night? Run the inner perimeter together, then outer?" _

"_Who said anything about running together? In fact, Embry, why don't you just take the night off? It's obvious you didn't really want to be out here tonight." _

Leah started running faster, which gave me no hope of catching up. Something was obviously off tonight. I knew she was mad at me for being late, but to assume I didn't want to run because of it was too much.

"_Geez Leah, I said I was sorry. What's with the cold shoulder?"_

Leah stopped dead in her tracks and I could feel the anger radiating from her thoughts. _"I don't know, Call, why don't you tell me? I have been asking myself the same question about you for months now. What happened? One minute we are best friends, then the next minute I turn around and you are ignoring me completely. I thought I had finally found someone that could understand me. I guess I was wrong."_

Leah's words stung as they hit me. I hadn't realized how much our friendship had meant to her. By protecting myself I had in turn hurt her, which was the last thing I had wanted to do. _"Lee, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to hurt you, I just had some personal stuff going on that was messing with me."_

"_Personal stuff, huh? Obviously it had to do with me, because I don't see you ignoring anyone else in the pack." _Leah let out a sigh and it took all my strength to keep my thoughts in check. _"Whatever, I guess it doesn't really matter much anymore. Now that Seth is back, maybe I am finally going to be able to get out of here. I think leaving La Push is the only answer to being happy, for me and for everyone else."_

The sadness in her voice, as well as the thought of her leaving, was all it took. All my thoughts and memories from the past months flooded my mind, and I knew she could see all of it. After it was all over, I had no doubts that she knew the truth of how I felt. My fear overwhelmed me. How was Leah going to respond? Instinct told me I should run, because she was most definitely going to kill me. But something else was telling me to stay. Her emotions were all mixed up, so it was hard to single out any one of them, but I was able to pick up on a small bit of desire radiating from her. That gave me a glimmer of hope that now that she knew the truth she might have similar feelings. We both stood in silence.

"_Leah…please say something…anything…"_


	6. Chapter 6:Runaway

**AN: Well here is is! Finally, a NEW chapter! Sorry it took me so long...but now the last five chapters are edited and better then ever! No major changes were made to the storyline, so if you already read the first five chapters before they were re-posted, and don't really want to go re-read them you should be ok. Just a heads up...things may slow down a bit for me on the writing front. I know I originally said I would try to post a new chapter every week, but when I was doing that I found that I was so focused on making sure the next chapter was written and ready that the other important things in my life(like sleep) were getting ignored. My new plan is to update every one-and-a-half to two weeks...it will all depend on how fast I write and then how fast I can get it Betaed, edited, and ready to post! But...the chapters ARE getting longer(Starting with this one). So hopefully that will help to compensate for the longer wait! :-)  
**

**Thank you SO much to my two fabulous Betas, justaskalice and JillM12. Without these girls I would be lost...and my punctuation would be atrocious! LOL! Thanks girls!**

**Ok, I won't torture you anymore...hope you all enjoy it! :-)  
**

Chapter Six: Leah: Runaway

_Leah_

If I could sum up the last few years of my life in one phrase, it would be short and sweet: emotional hell. In the last six years I had experienced both my highest of highs and my lowest of lows, so I guess it shouldn't be much of a surprise to me that fate picked today to deliver her next blow.

I should have seen it coming, since the night started out _so_ well. Embry and I had been fighting. He was late for patrols and didn't give me a believable excuse as to why. Really, I wasn't mad about him being late, I was more hurt by the fact that he didn't care.

A few months ago, Embry and I were practically inseparable; we did everything together and hung out all of the time. But true to the story of my life, when I stated to hope, I got hurt. Why had I let myself believe that this time would be different?

The answer to my question lay in one word: imprinting. That one word had hurt me in more ways then I could count. It took away my hopes of falling in love and my dreams of having a future.

My first encounter with the pain caused by imprinting was when I lost Sam to it. Sam was my first love, and I thought he would be my last. We had promised each other that we would be together forever. Then shortly after he started phasing, he imprinted on my cousin Emily Young. Suddenly, Sam wasn't seeing me through the same eyes anymore; he had fallen in love with another. Unfortunately for me, it wasn't just anyone; Emily was like a sister to me. So, in the end, I felt that I had been delivered a double blow: a broken heart, courtesy of Sam, and a betrayal of friendship, courtesy of Emily.

After I started phasing, and imprinting was explained to me, I began understand what happened between the two of them. Even then, when I knew Sam didn't have any control over it, I held on to the bitterness and pain. In some ways, knowing the truth was worse then not knowing. I not only saw how much Sam was in love with Emily, I felt it too. I also got to see, hear, and feel the pity that Sam had for me. Pity didn't help me feel any better about myself or the situation, I only felt more bitterness towards the whole thing.

In my mind, if I had to suffer, so should everyone else. In return for my attitude, no one wanted to be around me. I didn't blame them, I would have made the same decision if put in their shoes, but being hated by those who were supposed to be like a second family only made me feel more isolated and lonely. The only one who showed me any sympathy was Jake, and even that took time. I showed him that I could empathize with his feelings of hurt and abandonment. He was in a similar situation with Bella. We were both in love with the one person we couldn't have, and that is what we built our friendship on.

When the packs split, I made the decision to break away from Sam. I thought being out from underneath him may finally allow me the time and space I needed to heal. Honestly, I didn't really _want _to be under anyone's command, but if I had to choose between the pain of being around Sam or the small friendship that I was building with Jake, I was going to choose Jake. Over the next few weeks, Jake and I got fairly close to each other. I earned his trust by defending him when I knew he had been hurt the most, and he earned mine by letting me stay and giving me the space that I needed and had always wanted. Things finally seemed like they were going to be getting better. Jake and I even discussed leaving together, and finally getting away from the pain that came from being around the people we loved, when we knew they would never love us back. Just the two of us, out on our own, free at last.

I never made a conscious decision to try to take things with Jake in a romantic direction, but the idea of our friendship progressing in that direction didn't seem so bad either. We had both been hurt in the same way, so what better way to help each other heal then to comfort the other person and help them move on with their life? I had just gotten to the point of acknowledging that I had started to have feelings for Jake when it all came crashing down. Renesmee was born, and Jake imprinted on her. Luckily for me, I had never made it known to anyone where I thought things in our friendship were going, so it was easy to just stay friends and pretend nothing had changed. But on the inside, the pain had returned. It wasn't nearly as bad as it was the first time, but after that, I swore to myself, that I was _never_ going to fall for another wolf again.

Jake's imprinting eased the tension between the two packs, and although we stayed separate, we were on friendly terms. I have always been thankful that Jake decided to keep his pack separate; I think I may have gone crazy if I had to be under Sam again. It didn't take long for Embry and Quil to break away from Sam's pack to join ours. They couldn't stay away from their best friend for long; I was mildly surprised they had waited as long as they did. Embry and I hit it off almost immediately, but it wasn't until after the packs helped the Cullen's face the Volturi that we got really close. We had something in common; neither of us had imprinted. It was easy to be myself around him and for the first time in a long time, I felt that I could let my guard down. I thought that, for once, I had found somebody who actually cared about me; somebody I could call a true friend. Then Embry started completely ignoring me. It had been like that for the last three months. It probably would have gone on a lot longer had he not lost a bet with my brother, which forced him to run patrols with me tonight.

I have never been known for being able to hold my temper, so at first my hurt came out as anger. But after yelling at Embry for a while, I was emotionally drained, and I couldn't hold my true hurt in any longer.

I let out a long sigh. _"Whatever, I guess it doesn't really matter much anymore. Now that Seth is back, maybe I am finally going to be able to get out of here. I think leaving La Push is the only answer to being happy, for me and for everyone else." _

As I thought about leaving, something in Embry's mind changed and suddenly his thoughts and memories flooded my own.

I noticed, almost instantly, that all of his thoughts were about me and what he could do to make me happy. His memories showed me that our friendship had actually meant something to him. But there was something else I saw in his thoughts as well…at some point in our friendship Embry had fallen for me, and he had fallen hard.

There was one specific memory that said it all. Jake had caught Embry day-dreaming about me during a patrol run and decided to bring up the topic with him later on when they were hanging out. I don't think Embry ever intended on anyone know how he felt, because he denied it at first. Then Jake pointed out the obvious direction of his thoughts and Embry buckled under pressure. I could hear their discussion as if I was standing right there in the clearing with them.

"_Jake, I don't know what happened. One day we were just friends, then out of nowhere it was like I was seeing her through different eyes. Now I can't stop thinking about her. She's perfect for me in every way. What's wrong with me?" Embry shook his head and placed it in his hands._

_Jake laughed and shook his head. "Embry, I think the only thing wrong with you is that you are lovesick. Man, you got it bad for Leah!"_

_Embry looked back up at Jake with what looked like surprise in his eyes. "I'm not in _love _with her. It's just a crush…it will go away, right?"_

_Jake just rolled his eyes. "This is more than a crush, dude. I've been there, and I know love when I see it. You just said she was _perfect _for you. If that's not love what is it?"_

_A smile spread across Embry's face. "I guess your right, Jake. I'm in love."_

Embry was in _love _with me? At least that's what his thoughts had shown me, but I didn't know what to think. I was sure Embry could feel the battle that was going on in my mind, even if he wasn't hearing it through my thoughts, because my emotions were going haywire. I was flattered, and happy, that anyone would even look at me with that kind of desire. But what was with the way Embry had been treating me? It made me mad that he said he loved me, and then acted like he hated me. And did I feel the same way? The feeling of desire that was coming out though all the other mixed up emotions was telling me the answer was yes. That feeling was what scared me the most. I wanted to scream at myself for letting it happen, but the truth was, somewhere in our friendship, we had both fallen for each other.

I stood in silence as the last of Embry's thoughts faded away.

"_Leah…please say something…anything…" _I could feel the fear in Embry's words.

I knew Embry was waiting for a response, but I was still in shock from my new discovery; Embry Call had feelings for me, not only had feelings for me, he _loved_ me. He cared about me and wanted me to be happy; more than that _he_ wanted to be the one to make me happy. No one since Sam had cared about me like that. But what I still didn't understand was, if he really felt that way, why did he run away? Was I really that bad of a person?

"_Embry, why didn't you just tell me how you felt? I thought you hated me when you started ignoring me."_

He let out a sigh. _"To be honest Lee…I was scared. I thought for sure you would get angry with me. I never meant to hurt you, Leah. I really care about you, and I want to be able to prove that to you, if you'll let me."_

Embry's words showed me that he definitely cared about me, and I had to admit it felt good to be loved, but it also scared the crap out of me. The only person who had ever shown me that kind of love had left me with a broken heart. I wasn't ready or willing to put myself through that kind of pain ever again.

Embry read my thoughts. _"I'm not Sam, Leah…I won't do what he did to you."_

Memories of the night Sam left me flooded my mind, and my anger flared again.

"_Won't do what, exactly? Imprint? Embry, as much as I hate to admit it, Sam had no power over what happened with Emily. Just like you would have no power over it if you ever imprinted. I'm not willing to risk it...my heart can't take being broken like that again."_

"_Leah, it's been six years since Sam left. Don't you think it might be time to let someone else in? I'm not asking for forever. Just give me a chance to show you I care."_

Truth be told, I wanted to let him in; if I could see myself falling for anyone, it was Embry. But the overall fact remained that he was _still _a wolf, and therefore had the potential to one day imprint. I had sworn to myself that I wouldn't let another imprint tear me apart, and I was _not_ going to let this be the exception, despite my own feelings. The other part of it was that I knew if Embry ever did imprint it wouldn't be with me…I was broken merchandise, no one would want to keep me for forever.

No one really knew why a wolf imprinted, but the theory was, the person they imprinted on was genetically able to carry on, and improve, the wolf gene. Basically, you imprinted on someone that would produce bigger and stronger wolves in the next generation. This was something I was not able to do. Part of becoming a werewolf was that while we were phasing, we all stopped maturing. As a female, not maturing meant that I stopped ovulating and menstruating, which basically meant I was not able to have children. No one knew if this was a permanent change. I was the first and _only_ female to ever start phasing, but as far as I knew, I was a genetic dead end. In other words, I was not imprinting material.

"_I'm sorry, Embry…I just can't do it." _I could feel his pain at my words, and my own heart broke with his. Once again, I had managed to hurt someone I considered a friend…or potentially more than a friend. I guess there was one thing I would always be good at; making people miserable.

I let out a long sigh. _"You know, maybe I was right about what I said before. Maybe the only way to make everyone happy is to leave."_

Embry was quick to respond to my thoughts of leaving. _"Running away is not the answer, Leah. I have learned that, if nothing else, from this experience. You can't deny you have feelings for me; I can see it in your thoughts as plain as day. Just admit it to yourself, Lee."_

Unfortunately, it was hard for me to agree with what he was saying when I could still feel the pain he was going through. I knew the truth; I did feel something for Embry. I also knew it would be nearly impossible for me to ever be able to act on those feelings, and by staying here, I was only making his pain worse.

It only took me a split-second longer to make up my mind. I was leaving La Push, and I was doing it tonight. Before I could think it over again I was on my feet and running. I knew it wouldn't be hard to lose Embry; I was the fastest in the pack. I made sure to do a lot of dodging around so that he couldn't follow my thoughts or my scent very easily. I tried not to think of anything as I ran, but it was impossible to not think of what might have been. I was finally seeing just how perfect Embry and I might have been together, and it was causing my emotions run wild. I knew I couldn't let Embry see me cry, so I held on to my tears for as long as I could. Once I reached my emotional limit, I stopped to say my final goodbye.

"_Bye, Embry. I'm sorry for any pain I caused you. I know this is going to be for the best; you will find someone else to love. And I know you will be happy."_

"_Leah, please wait!"_ I didn't give him a chance to finish his thoughts before I phased back into my human form. The tears that had been threatening to come a few minutes earlier finally spilled out as I fell to my knees. I felt emotions I hadn't experienced in almost six years, but this time it was me saying goodbye.

I heard Embry howl, alerting Jake and the pack that there was a problem. I had to move fast, or risk them catching my scent and stopping me before I was out of town. Luckily, I had phased close to home. I pulled myself together as best as I could and threw my clothing on while I ran towards my house. Unfortunately, I wasn't fast enough; Jake was waiting for me on my front porch.

"Going somewhere, Leah?" Jake had that Alpha look in his eye, and I knew I was in for a lecture.

I put on my best "I don't give a damn" face and prepared myself for battle. "Jake, I can't stay here. The pack doesn't need me anymore, and all I do is hurt the people I care about. I have wanted to do this for a long time, and now I have my chance. So unless you plan on using your command to _make_ me stay, just get out of my way."

Jake didn't budge from where he stood. "I'm not going to force you stay, Leah, but I am going to make you think about what you're doing before you act. The whole pack cares about you, including me…otherwise I would have let you go along time ago. What I want to know is, why are you really leaving? Is it because you still don't feel like you belong, or is the real reason because you are afraid to fall in love?"

Jake's words pierced straight to my heart. "I'm not afraid to fall in love Jake, I'm afraid of what happens after I fall in love. I know I'm not good enough to make it last. I'm physically and mentally messed up, and I don't know if that's ever going to change. I may never be able to have children, so I can't carry on the wolf gene. That doesn't even touch on my mental issues. It doesn't matter if it's Embry or any other guy out there, once they see the _real_ Leah Clearwater, they run. And I _know_ I can't live through that again. Even more than that, I don't want Embry to have to suffer when I know there is someone better for him out there."

"You're not unlovable, Leah, and I wish you would stop seeing yourself that way. Embry really cares about you, and I don't see how anything you say or do is going to change that."

I knew that what Jake was saying was true, but I still wasn't ready to give in. I let out a sigh and looked directly into his eyes. "I just need some time to sort out my own feelings, and I know there is no possible way that I am going to be able to do that here. Not with Embry and every other member of the pack in my head trying to do it for me. Plus it will be good for me to get away and see something in the world besides La Push. Maybe I can even take some college courses. I can't let Seth outsmart me right? "

The look in Jake's eyes told me he understood. "Alright, Leah, you win. But promise me this…when you're done figuring this all out and you have finally come to grips with the truth that you _do_ belong here, come home. I know Embry will be waiting for you. Like I said before, he really does care about you, and I don't think that is about to change anytime soon."

I knew that Jake was right. It would take a lot more than me leaving to make Embry stop loving me, and deep down inside I knew that I wouldn't stop loving him…but I still needed to go. At least that would give Embry a chance to heal…even if I never did.

Jake finally stepped aside to let me through the door. He started to walk away, but I grabbed his arm to stop him before he was even out of the doorway. "Jake, I have one last request before you go. Please don't let Embry try to follow me. I need time and space to figure this out."

Jake looked up at me with sad eyes. Other than Embry, Jake was the closest thing I ever had to a best friend in the pack. I knew it must be tearing him apart that I was leaving. "I'll do my best, Lee, but I am not willing to use my command for this."

I tried to give him the best fake smile I could manage as I reached out to hug my Alpha and friend goodbye. "Thanks for everything, Jake, you're a great friend and leader."

"Just remember your promise, Lee." I started to interrupt him to argue but he put his hand up to stop me. "You may not have said it out loud, but I know you agree with me. Sort this all out and then come home where you belong."

The pain and sadness was taking over again, so I just nodded my head in response; it was a lot easier than actually saying the words.

After Jake disappeared into the trees, I went inside and threw a few things in a bag to take with me. I didn't need much, just some food for the road, the money I had saved, and a few changes of clothing. I left my mother a note on the table telling her and Charlie goodbye, and that I would let them know where I was when I got to wherever it was I was going…because truthfully I wasn't sure where that would be yet. The house was going to be quiet with me gone. After they got married Charlie moved to La Push to live with my mom; after Seth left it was only the three of us. Seth never moved back in after he came back, he had been on his own for six years, and wasn't ready to jump back into living with the family. For the time being, he was staying in Charlie's old place in Forks; maybe they would convince him to come home after I was gone so they wouldn't be too lonely. Grabbing my keys, I took one last look around, trying to store every last image to memory, and finally headed for the door.

The night air was cool on my hot skin, so I rolled my windows down as I drove out of town. Just as I hit the La Push boundary, I heard the cry of a lone wolf…it was Embry's sorrowful goodbye. I tried to hold the tears back, but I didn't have the strength to do it anymore. Once again, I could only hope that with time Embry would heal and move on with his life, because I knew he deserved much better than me. As for me, I knew that his final cry would haunt me forever; serving as a memory of what could have been.

**AN: Ok...so what did you think? Is the new and improved "Already Gone" up to your standards? Please review and let me know what you think!**


	7. Chapter 7: Trust and Freedom

**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for another delayed update. Hopefully the next one won't be as long of a wait! Changed my style up a bit again...I am going to start putting who's POV the chapter is in in italics at beginning...I have a few chapters coming up that may switch POV so it will be less confusing!**

**Again I can't say Thank You enough to my two wonderful Betas: JillM12 and justaskalice. These ladies are my heroes!**

**Hope you enjoy! :-)  
**

Chapter Seven: Renesmee: Trust and Freedom

_Renesmee_

My favorite part about my room in my parents' cottage was that it faced east. This meant that on the rare occasions when we actually got a sunny day here in Forks, I was the first to see it. Today was one of those days.

I woke up this morning to sunlight streaming into my room. I jumped out of bed and ran to open the window. As soon as it was open, I took a deep breath of fresh air and let the warmth of the sun hit my face and arms. I looked up and didn't see a single cloud in sight. It was _definitely_ going to be a beautiful day.

My mind flew through the many options a day like this held: a picnic in the meadow, a walk down First Beach, a motorcycle ride through the reservation, or maybe even cliff diving; that was if I could convince Jake to take me. We had already planned on spending the day together; the sunshine just gave us a lot more options of what to do.

As if on cue with my thoughts, I heard my phone start playing Jake's ringtone, "Werewolves of London." Uncle Emmett originally downloaded it as a joke, but Jake liked it, so it stuck.

Smiling, I flipped open my phone. "Hey, Jake!"

Jake laughed at my enthusiasm. "Morning, sunshine! You sure sound happy today."

I rolled my eyes. "Ha, ha, Jake. Only you would think something that lame was funny. Obviously, you must have looked outside. It's gorgeous out."

Jake laughed again. "I have indeed, which actually brings me to the reason I called. I know I promised we would spend the day together, but there was a little issue last night, and as a result I am going to have to cancel our plans."

Upon hearing the word issue, my first response was to worry. Typically, pack issues involved coming across an uninvited and potentially dangerous vampire. That was the whole reason that packs still ran patrols.

The pack rarely had to use their true force. Just the sight of a huge wolf was enough to chase off most wondering vampires. But every once and a while things got ugly; the last time was a little over a year ago. A nomad wondered into the wolves territory and tried to go after a group of campers. He never knew what was coming for him until it was too late.

"What kind of issue, Jake? Everything okay?"

"Don't worry, Ness, it's nothing for you to get excited about. Just some pack stuff that needs to be worked out." Jake's voice was only slightly reassuring, and he still didn't sound quite right.

"You sure you're ok, Jake? "

He let out a sigh. "Yeah…it's just been a long night, that's all."

"So, what happened, exactly?" I was curious to find out what had kept Jake up all night if it wasn't vampires.

"Leah left the pack. Actually, she left La Push altogether. So now, as Alpha, I am left cleaning up the mess, and there's a lot to clean up. I have to reorganize patrols, inform Sam of the situation, and try to get Embry to stop moping around. That just starts the list."

Everything except the last part made sense. "Why is Embry moping around?"

Jake laughed humorlessly. "Did I mention that Embry fell in love with Leah? Oh yeah, and the reason she left was because she was too afraid to let anything happen between them. She definitely stayed true to herself, though; Leah can't do anything without causing drama."

It definitely sounded like Jake was going to have his hands full for the day. I knew his pack needed him, especially poor Embry, but I still felt a little disappointed.

The worst part about not hanging out with Jake was that it meant I was now going to be stuck with my family all day. I had been avoiding this exact scenario since Jake told me about the imprint, almost a month ago. I still felt hurt by the fact that _they_ hadn't trusted me enough to tell me about it themselves.

"Okay, I guess I will find something else to do today. Maybe I can convince Uncle Emmett to take me hunting." I was whining, but I wanted to lay a little guilt on Jake for leaving me.

"Or, you could take this opportunity to talk to your parents. I know you've been avoiding it, Renesmee."

My mouth fell open in surprise. It shocked me how well Jake knew me. Sometimes I swore he knew me better than I knew myself.

I started whining again. "I know, I know. But Jake…they just don't understand me, and I don't think that it is going to change anytime soon. They still see me a little girl, and as a result of that they don't trust me at all. I don't know why they can't see that I'm _not_ a child anymore, I'm practically a grown woman."

"That's why you have to talk to them. Showing them that you are mature enough to confront them on this issue will help them see your point of view. Don't run away and try to hide; that's the childish thing to do."

I hated to admit it, but I knew Jake was right. If I never told them how I felt, nothing was ever going to change. I was spending the day with them anyway, so now was as good of a time as any.

I let out a sigh. "Ok, I'll talk to them. It's not going to be pretty, but you're right, it has to happen sometime."

I could hear the pride in Jake's voice. "That's my Ness. And remember, no matter what, I'm always going to be here for you. Even if they won't, I'll treat you like the beautiful woman I know you are."

As Jake called me beautiful, I felt a strange feeling come over me. I got butterflies in my stomach and felt myself blush. I had never felt like this before Jake had told me abut the imprint. But lately, this had been my reaction whenever Jake said something sweet to me.

I couldn't help but smile. "Thanks Jake, that's a really sweet thing for you to say. You really are the best friend a girl could ask for."

I could tell from his voice that Jake was also smiling. "Sure, sure, Ness. Well, I should probably get going, but call me later and let me know how it goes. I'll need a little break by then, anyway."

"Will do! Oh, and on a side note, since you are ditching me today, you better come up with something fun to do tomorrow. Aunt Alice said it is supposed to be sunny all weekend."

Jake hesitated before answering. "Umm…sorry Ness. I promised Seth I would help him move his friend Alicia and her sister into their new place tomorrow."

It looked like I was going to be spending all weekend at home. Meanwhile, Jake was going to be spending his day with two girls I didn't know. Another new feeling came over me; I was jealous.

"Will it take all day?" I really hoped he would say no.

"Probably not. I'll tell you what. To make up for today, I'll call you when we're done moving them in, and then you can have me all to yourself for the rest of the day. Sound good?"

"Perfect!" I smiled. It was better than good; it was exactly what I wanted.

After Jake and I finished our conversation, I headed to the main house. Since my parents weren't in the cottage, it made sense that they would be there. I decided to walk instead of run. It gave me time to collect my thoughts; something that was a lot easier to do when my father wasn't reading them. The cottage was just out of his range, but I had to be more carful the closer I got to the main house.

I tried to focus on what I was going to say to my parents, but my mind kept going back to my new feelings about Jake. The change in my feelings wasn't anything I made a conscious decision about, it just kind of happened. I wasn't quite sure where it was all leading, but it was pretty confusing to say the least. As I reached the main house, I cleared my mind of my thoughts about Jake. My dad had been on an anti-Jake kick lately, so I didn't want to add fuel to the fire by letting him catch me in my current thoughts.

The smell of bacon and eggs was in the air; Grandma Esme had been cooking again. Normally, I loved Grandma Esme's breakfast, but today my nerves were getting the best of me. Eating human food would not agree with me at all. Not wanting to offend her, I sought my parents out through thoughts, rather than calling out to them.

"_Dad? Can you and Mom come outside? We need to talk."_

A few minutes later, my mother and father stepped out onto the deck that surrounded the main house. As they stepped into the sunlight, their skin lit up like diamonds. It was a beautiful sight, and even though I had seen it millions of times, it never ceased to take my breath away. _I don't know what Jake was calling _me_ beautiful for this morning, because _that_ is true beauty._

My father's sudden growl brought me back to reality.

"What was Jacob doing at the cottage this morning? He knows the rules. I don't like him there unsupervised, and this is precisely the reason why."

My mother's face suddenly grew concerned. "What happened, Edward?"

I rolled my eyes and let out a sigh. At least it wasn't going to be difficult to bring up what I wanted to talk about; their reaction was a perfect example of it. With that in mind, I snapped.

"First off, Jake was _not_ at the cottage this morning. I talked to him on the phone. And secondly, so what if he was? It's not like Jake is going to do anything."

My mother spoke softly in an attempt to calm me. "Renesmee, we have been over this before. Your father and I don't feel that is it appropriate, at your age, for you and Jacob to be alone in the cottage."

"Or anywhere else for that matter." My father added under his breath.

I was right about my father being on a Jake-bashing kick. I really didn't get what it was about Jake…my dad was fine when any of the other pack guys that were around. My suspicions were that it had something to do with the imprint, and more specifically, the fact that at some point Jake and I might become romantically involved. I was sure he wouldn't be excited about that happening, especially given Jake's history with my mother. Since it was technically on the same subject, I decided to add it to the list of things to discuss with them. But first I needed them to trust _me_; then I could ask them about someone else.

"This is exactly what I came here to talk about. You're always telling me that I'm too young for things, but you need to realize that I'm not a little girl anymore. You treat me like a porcelain doll that you are afraid of breaking. You won't tell me anything, you won't let me do anything...I feel like you have no trust in me at all. I just don't get it anymore." I was yelling, and I knew that any member of my family who was inside could hear me, but at that point I didn't care. If being angry was what it took to get my point across, then so be it.

_At least I know Jake trusts me. _I thought to myself.

My father heard my thoughts and looked down at me with sudden realization in his eyes. "Jacob told you about the imprint, didn't he?"

I nodded.

My father let out a sigh and looked at my mother before continuing. "Why don't you come inside, Renesmee. We obviously have a lot to talk about."

I followed my parents inside and upstairs to Grandpa Carlisle's study. I entered the room, and my father motioned for me to sit down in a chair opposite of the couch where he and my mother were already sitting.

My father was the one to finally break the silence. "Renesmee, I want you to know that your mother and I love you more than you could ever imagine. We never meant to hurt you. Everything we have ever done was because we were trying to keep you safe."

"I know that, Dad, and I appreciate that. But how is keeping secrets from me helping keep me safe?" I paused before continuing. "I guess what I want to know is why you didn't tell me about the imprint. It should have been you telling me about it from the beginning, not Jake, six years after the fact."

It was my mother who answered this time. "Like your father said, we never meant for it to hurt you. We only kept the imprint a secret because we wanted to make sure you were mature enough to handle the implications of it."

"That is exactly my point. You're always worried that I'm too young for everything, but the truth is I'm not. I don't think I'm asking you for too much, I just need a little more trust and freedom. I'm a lot more mature than either of you give me credit for. Everyone else sees that, why can't you?"

My parents locked eyes with each other. They were having a mental discussion. I could tell by the way my father silently nodded his head, as if he was answering a question. Also, my mother had a look of concentration on her face that she only got when she was pulling back her shield so my father could read her thoughts. When they finally looked back at me, they both looked sad but understanding at the same time. I think I had finally gotten through to them.

Again it was my father who broke the silence. "Renesmee, we know it's hard for you to understand why we act the way we do. But where most parents have nearly two decades to get to this point in their child's life, we only had six years. With that in mind, you should be able to see why it's harder for us to let you go."

I opened my mouth to argue but my father stopped me.

"We also want to take into consideration your side of things. You _have_ grown up, and as much as we don't want to admit it, your mother and I both agree, it's high time we did exactly that."

My mother picked up where my father left off. "We are really proud of how you have handled yourself with everything, Renesmee. The way you responded to confronting us, as well as to learning about the imprint, shows us that you are mature enough to handle things on your own. We hope, by giving you a little more freedom, and treating you more like a grown up, we can prove that we really do trust you. I only wish we could have figured this out earlier, then we may have prevented hurting you."

My parents understood me a lot better than I thought. I looked into my mothers eyes, and I knew if it were possible for her to cry, I would have seen tears. I realized then that the way I had reacted had hurt them almost as much as they had hurt me.

"Mom, Dad, I'm sorry I reacted so badly this morning. Thank you for understanding where I am coming from, it means a lot to me. I won't make you regret your decision."

My father smiled with pride. "I don't doubt your word for one minute, and if you have shown us anything it's that we _can _trust you," his smile faded, "but there are some ground rules we want to lay down." Rules. Of course, leave it to my dad to figure out a way to put restrictions on freedom.

"Your safety is still very important to us. We aren't going to restrict where you go, or what you do anymore, but we do ask to be informed when you are leaving the vicinity of the property. This includes going out with Jacob. In fact, I especially want to know when you're with him."

I rolled my eyes at my father. Topic one covered, on to topic two.

I snapped again. "Dad, what is your issue with Jake? He's not the enemy you know. You _can _trust him."

"Renesmee, I know you think very highly of him, and I know he would never intentionally hurt you, but I also know what goes on in his mind. In that area, he is like any typical young adult male." I could hear the disapproval in his voice, as well as see it on his face.

"You don't treat any of the other guys in the pack like that, and I'm sure they aren't pristine in _their_ thoughts. Tell me the truth, Dad, why Jake? Is this because of the imprint?"

My father didn't answer, and with the look I got from him, I knew he wasn't going to. I turned my attention to my mother instead; she had always been easier to break.

"Mom? Is it the imprint, or do you really hate the person you used to consider your best friend?"

My mother looked shocked. I knew the last part was a little below the belt, but I was determined to get to the bottom of my parents new dislike for Jake.

"Renesmee, you know very well that I do not, nor have I ever _hated_ Jacob. Your father and I, are just concerned that Jacob may try to push your friendship in a new direction now that you know about the imprint."

I was shocked and confused by my parents' response. I knew as well as they did, that there was a possibility that as a result of the imprint, things between Jake and I could become romantic. But as far as I knew, Jake still thought of me as his best friend. He had never pushed anything romantically, even after telling me about the imprint.

Suddenly, an idea crossed my mind. Maybe, my parents were getting upset because _they_ knew Jacob felt differently about me. My heart fluttered at the thought that Jake might see me as more than a friend. I decided to try to push the subject a little more, to see if I could get anymore information from my parents.

"Jake and I are just friends. Knowing about the imprint hasn't changed that. He would never push me into something I didn't want."

"Renesmee, I can read your thoughts just as easy as I can anyone else's. You can't hide from _me_ that your feelings for him have changed; I know you _do _want it."

My head snapped up at my father's comment. Apparently my feelings were not as unclear as I had hoped. "_Or at least not unclear to those who invade my thoughts." _I shot a glare in my father's direction. I wanted him out of my head; things were confusing enough as it was.

"You may not see where this is headed yet, but I can. For that reason, I'm staying firm on this one. I want to know what is going on between you and Jacob, and I expect you to obey. Do you understand?" I jumped at my father's angry response. The look on his face told me that there would be no change in his "I hate Jacob Black" mentality today. It wasn't worth arguing with them anymore.

"Fine. You win." I glared back at my father. "So, is that your only rule?"

My mother nodded. "For now yes. We feel you can be trusted at this point to make your own decisions regarding everything else. However, if any issues come up, we will need to revaluate at that time."

I had at least made some progress with my parents. They now trusted me enough to run my own life; that is, unless Jake was involved.

At this point I was pretty annoyed with my dad reading my thoughts. I needed time to cool down and think things through; the confusion was almost to the point of giving me a headache.

As I turned to leave, I decided to _inform _my father about my plans with Jake the next day. He never said it had to be verbal. "_Just so you know, I _am_ hanging out with Jake tomorrow night. Hope that's ok, _Dad."

My last comment made him even angrier than before. The last thing I heard, was my mother telling him to calm down, as the door slammed shut behind me, and I ran for my sanctuary.

**A/N: Ok...so I know you are just DYING to hit that little review button at the bottom...I can hear it calling your name...so just listen to what it is telling you and review please! :-) P.S. Thank you to luv2beloved, NewTwilightEclipse, and laurazuleta18 for reviewing EVERY chapter! Will your name be here next time? :-)**


	8. Chapter 8: Revelations

**AN: It's been awhile...I know! I have no good excuse other than life just takes over sometimes! Anyway, excuses aside, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Hopefully the next one won't take as long...no promises though! Oh and in other news(if you didn't see this on Chapter 1) Already Gone got accepted to Twilighted! I'm super excited to get some more exposure, specially on such an awesome web site! :-)**

**As always THANK YOU to my beautiful Beta justaskalice. I had a minor writing breakdown recently, and her encouragement pulled me through...yet again! I really don't know what I would do without her! :-)**

**Ok enough from me...go read! LOL!  
**

Chapter Eight: Renesmee: Revelations

_Renesmee_

I stopped running when I got to the meadow. I always felt better when I was there. It was such a familiar place, and it held so many memories. Most of them involved Jake; he had always taken me there to get away. My thoughts had been consumed with Jake since I left my parents' house. The memories only added to the mix and brought me back to the reason I had come here in the first place. With a sigh, I collapsed into the cool grass.

I was so confused! I didn't know what my feelings were trying to tell me. Was I really falling for Jake? I thought back to how I felt when I talked to him that morning. The nervous butterflies, the jealousy, the disappointment when I found out that I couldn't hang out with him – it reminded me of stories my mother had told me about falling in love with my father. But Jake had been my best friend for my whole life, and didn't best friends get jealous of other people sometimes?

The only thing I had confirmed to myself was that most of the changes in my behavior coincided with Jake telling me about the imprint. It was almost like the idea of us being a couple had triggered a bunch of previously unknown feelings.

I wasn't sure those feelings were pointing in the direction of us being more than friends, though. I needed more evidence to fully come to that conclusion. I tried to think if anything else had changed in the way I had acted or felt around him.

As I thought about it, more and more examples popped into my head. The biggest changes were all physical things. Like the way my heart raced when he hugged me, and how I got lightheaded just by looking at him when he had just come back from a patrol run. Not that I hadn't found him at least a little attractive before. You would have to be crazy to _not_ find the wolves attractive. But only Jake made my heart beat wildly and made me lose my train of thought.

There were little things too. Like how I felt empty when he wasn't around, and how, because of that, I wanted to spend every waking moment with him. I was so intent on having him around, that I even tried to force him to do things I knew he regularly wouldn't. Like a few weeks ago when I tried to convince him to go shopping with me and Aunt Alice. He had politely declined and claimed that he had to run patrols. I was pretty sure that was just an excuse, though.

I added everything up in my head, and all the evidence pointed to one thing.

"I like Jacob Black!" Saying it out loud made it more real. But was this really just a little crush? Or was what I was feeling more serious than that?

I had absolutely no personal experience with falling in love, but I learned a lot from watching my family. Every couple in my family showed a deep devotion to their mate. They were willing to put all their selfish motives aside and do anything for each other. Even when they did have a fight or argument, they would talk it out and make compromises with each other. No one ever left feeling like they totally lost. But most of all, I saw that they completed each others lives in a way that no one else could. It showed in the way they would each light up when their prospective mates walked in the room after being gone for a long hunting trip. Or the way they passionately embraced and held each other, even if all we were doing was watching a movie together as a family. That was the image of true love, and when I really thought about it, that was what I wanted with Jake. I didn't just like Jacob, I _loved_ him.

I was excited by my new revelation. So excited in fact, that I was just about ready to grab my phone and call Jake, when a new fear surfaced. _What if he doesn't feel the same way?_

I tried to convince myself that Jake _had_ to feel the same way. It was the only logical reason why my parents were acting so protective around him. But another idea had pushed its way into my mind and kept me from firmly believing what I had been telling myself. What if it was opposite of what I had originally thought? What if my parents, and more specifically my father, had not been protective because Jacob _liked_ me, but instead, were protecting me from getting hurt, because they knew Jacob did _not_ like me?

The only thing that didn't line up with my new theory was that my parents had been acting different for awhile. If they knew I would end up hurt, they would have stopped things from going down that path sooner. After all, I had always been Daddy's little girl, and he hated anything that upset me. I couldn't figure out why this situation would be any exception.

I was starting to feel hopeful that my original theory had to be correct when it hit me; the exception was the imprint. My parents knew how the imprint worked, and they knew that if they tried to keep Jake and I apart, it would hurt us both more than if they just let things run their course.

The worst part was, in my mind, it made perfect sense for Jake not to feel the same way about me. After he told me about the imprint, I had pretty much told him that I wasn't sure if things would ever change between us. I knew that we would be best friends forever, but at that time I doubted things would ever go any further. I even encouraged him to look for true love elsewhere. I wish I would have known then how I would feel now. I didn't want him to find love with another girl; I wanted him to find it with me. I just hoped I hadn't chased him away.

The battle over whether to tell Jake or not continued in my head. In the end, I decided that I couldn't let my fears of getting rejected control me. If I didn't act on this, I would regret it later...especially if he _did _feel the same way. I had to give this thing with Jake a chance. Even if he didn't feel the same, I was confident we would still be friends. He basically told me that much when he told me about the imprint. And if he did like me…my heart raced at the thought of us together as a couple.

The next question was, how was I going to tell him? This was all new and uncharted territory for me, and for once, I was faced with something that I didn't understand. I had to ask for help. At first I thought about calling one of the wolf girls, since they would have the best advice on the subject, but I was afraid that word would get back to Jake, which was the last thing I had wanted. For the same reason, I knew that any of Jake's pack mates were also out of the question. I finally decided to call the only other person I knew I could trust with my new information, Aunt Alice.

She answered on the first ring. "Hello? What can I do for you, Nessie?" I was proud to be one of the few people Aunt Alice had to ask why I was calling. My genetics made it hard for her to see me in her visions.

"Hi, Aunt Alice. Hey, can you sneak out and come meet me someplace? I am having a problem with something, and I need some advice."

"Sure! How about meeting me at the cottage?"

"Are my parents there? It's something kind of private…"

Aunt Alice laughed; she knew as well as I did that there was no such thing as privacy if my father was around.

"Your dad went hunting with Em and Jas, something about blowing off some steam with the boys, and your mom was going to head to Port Angeles with Esme to stock up on groceries for you and the pack. After that, I'm pretty sure she was planning on sticking around here until your dad gets back. But let me check really quick to make sure plans haven't changed." There was a pause, in which I knew she was searching the future, before she answered again. "Plans all look the same, so the cottage should be safe."

"Great, I will see you in a few then." I clicked my phone shut and headed back to my parents' cottage.

Aunt Alice beat me there. "Okay, Nessie, what is this all about? Since you are obviously trying to hide this from your parents, it must be important."

I wasn't sure if I wanted to just come out and tell her everything, so I decided to use the "I have a friend" approach. It wasn't a complete lie; Embry and Leah definitely could qualify as my friends in need. I knew she wouldn't know the difference since she couldn't see the wolves' futures either.

"Well, I have a friend…and he has recently come to the conclusion that he likes one of his best girlfriends as more then just friends. He wants to tell her, but he doesn't know how. He asked me for advice, but I don't really have any experience in that area, so I wanted to ask you about it."

Aunt Alice smiled back at me. "This is about you and Jake isn't it?"

I was shocked! Both Jake and I blocked her visions, so I didn't understand how she could know exactly what I was talking about.

I tried lying again. "No, why would you think that?"

Aunt Alice gave me a look that clearly said saw right through me. "I heard you arguing about it with your parents this morning, and really, a friend? Why would that need to be a secret from your parents?"

I looked down in shame. "Okay, you're right. It's about Jake…"

Aunt Alice squealed with excitement and the next thing I knew I was wrapped tightly in a hug. "Oh, I just knew it! I may not be able to see it, but I knew it!"

I laughed at her reaction. "So…now that you know the truth, can you help me?"

She released her vice grip on me and backed away slightly before answering. "Of course, I can!"

I smiled back at Aunt Alice. "All right then, how do I tell Jake that I like him?"

"The secret is finding a way to tell him, without actually _telling _him. Take me and your Uncle Jasper for example. I remember the first time I got a vision of us together…" She paused, and I could tell by the distant look in her eyes that she was seeing that same vision all over again.

As quickly as the look appeared it disappeared and she continued. "It took me forever to figure out how to tell him what I saw in our future. I mean, you can't just walk up to stranger and say, 'Oh, by the way, I can see the future…and I see you and me in it.' He would have thought I was crazy! So I had to figure out a way to _show_ him instead of telling him. It took a lot of planning, but in the end I came up with the perfect solution to my dilemma. I decided to use my knowledge of his gift to feel emotions, to show him how I felt," she laughed to herself. "I guess you can say I let him _feel _how I felt. Of course, I knew it would work perfectly, but that's not the point. My point is that you need to find a way to _show_ Jake how you feel. It may help you get over some of the fear of actually saying it out loud."

I knew exactly what she was hinting at. My gift was to show others visions of my thoughts. All it took was a touch, and I could show anyone anything…memories from my past, my present thoughts, or visions of the future; or at least what I thought the future would look like. I didn't have the precognitive gift that my aunt had. Which meant that unlike my Aunt Alice, I _didn't _know how things would end up with Jake. I didn't want to be the girl who poured my heart out only to have it broken a few minutes later.

"Oh, Alice, I wish for once you could see my future! That way you could tell me if this was all going to be worth it. I'm just so worried that he won't feel the same way."

Aunt Alice gave me a look that was both sympathetic and condescending all at the same time. "I know, Nessie. I'm sorry I can't comfort you by telling you that it's all going to be okay. However, what I can tell you is that you will never know how he feels unless you take a leap of faith and just go for it."

She was right; I wasn't going to find out anything by just sitting around. The truth was that no matter what happened, Jake and I would still be friends; the imprint pretty much guaranteed that. It seemed as if I had nothing to lose, so I decided to go for it. There was only one thing left to take care of. I wanted to make sure that I was doing everything just right, and for that I needed practice.

I put on my best puppy dog face and looked back at my aunt. "Aunt Alice…I have one more _little_ favor to ask." She looked at me expectantly. "Can I use you to practice my visions on? I want everything to be perfect when I _show_ Jake that I like him."

She laughed in response to my question. "I'll let you do it, but only on one condition." This time it was me who looked expectantly at her. "You need to tell your mother."

My mouth fell open in shock. After the fight that morning, telling either of my parents was the last thing I wanted to do. I was about to ask if she was kidding, but my look must have said it all. Aunt Alice interrupted me before the words were even formed in my mouth.

"I know what you are thinking…but let me put it this way. Your mother's ability to shield us may be the only way to keep anyone _else_ from knowing your, and my, thoughts."

My mother rarely ever used her shield against my father. When I was young, my mother had agreed on one exception. As long as I was honest with her, and she felt the reason was good enough, she would shield me when I needed to be alone in my thoughts. This was definitely a great example of one of those times. The down side of the agreement was that once I got things worked out, I had to share my thoughts with my father too, and that was the part I wasn't looking forward to. Based on our discussion that morning, I knew my father wasn't going to take my newfound feelings well. I wasn't too sure about my mother either, but I wanted Aunt Alice's help, so I was willing to take my chances.

"Okay…it's a deal. I'm a little worried that she won't be as thrilled about all this you are, but I guess I will have to tell her eventually, right?"

Aunt Alice laughed. "Don't worry too much about it. I'm sure your mother is going to take this a lot better than you think. Trust me, Ness, even if I can't see it all, I have a great feeling that this is all going to turn out perfectly."

It sounded like she was hinting at something more than just how my mother was going to take my confession. I started to wonder if Aunt Alice knew more about the situation than what she was letting on. I didn't dwell on it for long, though; I was anxious to go talk to my mother so that I could get my practice started.

"Alright, let's go get the hard part done first." I knew Aunt Alice would probably be okay with waiting to tell my mom, but since my father was out hunting, it was the perfect time to talk to her without having to try hide from him.

Aunt Alice smiled and turned to run towards the house, but before she could take off I reached out and embraced her in another hug. "Thanks for everything, Aunt Alice. Sometimes I don't know how I would survive without you."

"Anything for my favorite niece."

I stepped back and let go, then rolled my eyes and laughed. "I'm your _only _niece."

I was the second fastest runner in the family, and normally I would have beaten my Aunt Alice by a long shot, but I ran slower so I could figure out exactly what I was going to tell my mother. When I got to the house, Aunt Alice and my mother were already outside waiting for me.

"Alright, Renesmee, are you going to tell me what this is all about? Where did you run off to this morning? And why Alice is dragging me out here now?" My mother gave me a stern look that made me want to turn around and forget the whole thing, but before I could even think about running away, Aunt Alice blocked my exit. She smiled at me and gave me the thumbs up to go ahead. Slowly, I turned back towards my mother.

"Well…I wanted to ask you a favor. Remember when I was little, and you used to shield me when I needed time to sort out my thoughts away from Dad? I was kind of wondering if I could ask you to do that again…"

The stern look had not disappeared. "Does this have anything to do with why you ran off this morning?"

_Now comes the hard part_, I thought to myself. "It has a lotto do with why I ran off this morning. In fact it has _everything_ to do with it. I ran off because I needed some time to sort some stuff out in my head. More specifically, I needed time to sort out my feelings for Jake." I paused and looked up at my mother, to gauge her expression before continuing. She still looked serious, but a little calmer than before; I decided it would be safe to go on.

"Ever since Jake told me about the imprint, I've started to notice a change in our relationship. The things he said to me, and did with me affected me differently than before. He's always made me happy, but this is different. I felt almost…giddy around him. I've never felt like this before about anyone, and frankly it all had me very confused. The argument with you and Dad this morning didn't help, in fact it almost made it worse. Now I wasn't just confused about my own feelings; I was confused about _your_ feelings as well. I couldn't figure out why you and Dad were being so protective." I paused and looked down. I was afraid to look my mother in the eye when I told her I was falling for Jake.

"It took me awhile to analyze everything and get it all straight in my mind, but once I did I could only come up with one logical conclusion." I took a deep breath.

"I'm falling in love with Jacob." The words came out rushed, and the silence that followed made me wonder if my mother had understood me.

I chanced a sideways glance at Aunt Alice to see if it was safe to continue. Her smile told me it was. If my mother was upset, Aunt Alice would have looked more concerned; not completely ecstatic like she did now.

"The problem is, I don't know if Jake feels the same way, and the only way to find out is to tell him how I feel. That's where I need your help. I need time to figure out exactly what I am going to say to him. Or really, what I am going to _show_ him. I don't have the guts to say it out loud, so I am going to show him with my visions." I heard Aunt Alice giggle beside me. If my mother hadn't suspected that Aunt Alice had put me up to this before, she probably had it figured out now.

"The main thing is I don't want Dad to read my thoughts, and interfere before I have a chance to discuss it with Jake. I could tell by the way things went this morning that Dad's not thrilled about the idea of me and Jake being anything more than friends. But since I don't even know if that's going to be a reality yet, I would rather wait until after I _do _know before I get lectured by him for nothing. Either way, even if Jake says he just wants to be friends, I promise to hold up my side of the deal. If you agree to shield me, I'll tell Dad about all of this; but first I want to tell Jake."

Once finished, I looked up, and was surprised to see a smile on my mother's face.

"I have to admit that I haven't been completely honest with you, Renesmee. I started seeing the changes in the way that you acted around Jacob about a month ago. I'm guessing that was when he told you about the imprint. I didn't say anything about it for a few reasons. First of all, I didn't know if you knew about the imprint yet, and I wasn't going to be the one to tell you if Jake hadn't. Besides the trust issues that we discussed this morning, that was another reason your father and I kept the imprint a secret from you. We both agreed that Jacob should be the one to tell you about it, not us. Secondly, if you did know about the imprint, I didn't want to plant ideas in your head about where it was all leading if you weren't ready for that kind of relationship. That's also why I was so worried about Jake forcing things in that direction. I wanted to make sure that whatever happened between you and him was what _you _wanted, and not anyone else. From what you just told me, I can see you have made your choice, and I am more than willing to help you by shielding you."

I smiled back at my mother and ran to embrace her. I was so grateful that I didn't know how to put my thanks into words, so I placed my hand on her cheek and let my visions do it for me.

"I love you, Mom, even though you weren't one hundred percent honest with me."

My mother laughed. "I love you too, Nessie. Now let's get to work on those visions before your father gets home and wonders what we are up to."

I spent the rest of the afternoon planning out exactly what I was going to show Jake and practicing on my Aunt Alice and my mother. By the time my father and uncles got home, I had it down perfectly.

My father and I apologized to each other for the fight, and for the time being it seemed like my father was okay with things. I attributed his change in attitude to two different things. For one thing, Jake wasn't around. For another, my mother was shielding me, so my father couldn't hear that all _I_ was thinking of was Jake.

I knew that my father was well aware of the fact that my mother was shielding me, due to the fact that he could no longer hear _any_ of my thoughts. I also knew that he was aware of the agreement between me and my mother. This meant that because he knew I was being shielded, he also knew something was going on. I didn't want him getting too suspicious, so I had decided to talk to Jake the next opportunity I had, which was probably going to be when we were hanging out the next day.

That thought made me nervous, and it was hard to act normal around my family for the rest of the day. When the night came to a close, my parents and I headed back the cottage so I could sleep. I tossed and turned for what seemed like forever before I finally drifted off to sleep, and the thoughts that I was having of Jake and I together turned into dreams of the relationship I hoped would develop.

**AN: That's a wrap folks! Quick shout out to all my reviews from last chapter...Thank you Efficient Vixen, NewTwilightEclipse, luv2beloved, and laurazuleta18. Also thank you to those that added Alerts and made this a Favorite! I'm at 20 reviews...it would rock my world if I could get to 30! :-) So until next time...go review! LOL! :-)**


	9. Chapter 9: A New Beginning

**AN: I'm not dead! Sorry it's been so long since the last update! Life got super crazy, then I got a bad case of writers block...add that together and you get an absolutely unacceptable two month wait for an update...:-( I promise to try harder to get the next one up faster!**

**A Few Quick Updates/Highlights**

**I now have Banners for Already Gone! :-) They are posted on my Profile. One is by Dazzled By Jake and the other is by edward143bella. Both of them are awesome! :-) So a big thanks to both of them for that!**

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**And Lastly: Already Gone was reviewed by Twific Promotions! :-) First Official Review(and hopefully more to come!) I linked it to my Profile since inserting links here sucks! Go check it out!**

**THANK YOU to my wonderful Beta justaskalice! She keeps me going when I feel like I want to quit! :-)  
**

Chapter Nine: Courtney: A New Beginning

_Courtney_

I was having the dream again. It was the same dream I had been having over and over again for the past three years.

I was at the Olympics. All my training and hard work was finally paying off, and I knew in my heart that this was it. If I skated a perfect long program, which I was fully capable of doing, the gold would be mine. My nerves raced as I entered the ice, and with one final look of encouragement from my coaches, my program began. My skating was the best it had ever been. Every jump was perfectly rotated and the landings were solid. My spins were centered and fast, every one completed with far more than the required number of rotations. The extension on my spirals was beautiful, and my footwork was quick and sharp. It was the perfect program. As I hit my final pose the crowd erupted in cheers, chanting my name. Strangely, as the cheering continued it got louder, and clearer, as if the audience was sitting right next to me, and not in the stands. The strangest part, was that the loudest voice sounded oddly like my sister, Alicia.

"Courtney. Courtney, hun, wake up. We're almost there."

The dream came to an end, and my eyes fluttered open just in time to see the "Welcome to Forks" sign fly by. I stretched, and blinked a few times to clear the sleep from my eyes.

"How long was I out?"

I didn't think I had been asleep for more than a few hours, but the last thing I remembered was stopping in Portland to get the rest of my sister's things from her apartment. Portland to Forks was at least a five hour drive. My sister confirmed my assumptions.

"You fell asleep just outside of Portland. You feeling okay today? It's not like you to sleep like that in the middle of the day. "

My sister looked at me with concern in her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tried from the early morning, I guess. Sorry I didn't help you more with the drive."

I had intended on driving at least half of the time on our trip from Colorado. But a headache yesterday, followed by a sleepless night and an early morning today, stopped me from doing my fair share. Alicia had driven the full twelve hours from Denver to Boise yesterday, then the five hour stretch from Portland to Forks today. My only contribution was the seven hour drive from Boise to Portland, and even that I had to fight for. Alicia had argued that I hadn't gotten enough sleep and need to rest longer, but I finally convinced her that she had to sleep sometime, too. I felt really bad for making her do practically all the driving herself.

"It's fine, really. I would rather have you feeling healthy, than worrying about helping me with the drive." My sister smiled at me, but I could tell she was exhausted.

I smiled back, then turned my attention towards the window and watched the passing scenery. We were on the outskirts of town, and the forest had just begun to give way to a few houses. About ten minutes later, we reached our final destination. As we pulled up to our new house, I couldn't help but think about the last few years and everything that had happened.

Four years ago, if you would have asked me where I would be today, I would have never imagined my self back in a small town, similar to the one I grew up in, living with my sister. My future would probably have looked a lot more like the dream I had just woken up from. But four years ago, I never would have guessed that my whole life was about to change.

I grew up in a small town in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Much like any kid from that area, I was quickly introduced to the world of winter sports. The difference was that while most kids my age took to the slopes, I took to the ice.

From the very beginning, it was obvious that I was a natural. At the age of six, I was the youngest in my class to successfully land all of my single jumps. I quickly passed all of my lower level tests and began my competitive skating career at the age of eight. I was easily one of the best skaters at my rink. Even at that young age I dominated my competition. I took first place in every event I competed in.

At that point it was obvious, both to my parents and my coaches, that our small town rink was not equipped to give me what I needed. A few months later my mother and I moved to Colorado Springs and I began my training at the World Arena.

All too quickly my world became a whirlwind of lessons, practice, and competitions. Skating was all I knew. When I wasn't on the ice, my time was monopolized by other skating related activities; ballet class to improve my style and grace, weight training to keep my strength up, and Pilates to improve my flexibility. If I wasn't doing any of those things, I would be found in a quiet corner of the rink lobby, studying so I stayed caught up with school. I rarely saw the rest of my family, but they all understood the strict regimen I was under. On occasion, my mom and I would make a weekend trip home, or my dad, sister, and brother would come to stay with us just so we didn't completely loose touch. My social life was also non-existent, but that didn't mater much since my only friends were fellow skaters. It was a life many wouldn't have wished for, but I loved every minute of it.

In the end, my hard work and dedication paid off. I was one of the youngest Junior Champions in the history of the sport, and in my first year as a senior skater I was predicted to be the next Olympic Champion. Everything was falling into place. I never expected it to all come crashing down. But that is exactly what happened.

It all started almost three years ago, to the day. I was sixteen, and the Senior Championships were less than three months away and I was skating better than I ever had. At first I just felt a little sick, and more tired than normal, but since it was cold and flu season, I didn't think much of it. Then I started getting migraine headaches every day. They were really bad, and I probably should have stayed in bed, but,the gold medal was within my grasp. I wasn't going to let a few headaches ruin it for me. My mom noticed something was off, but I just told her that I was coming down with something and I would be fine. She let it go pretty quick after that.

A week later, when the frequent bloody noses started and any fall I took left a bruise the size of Texas, I knew I was up against a lot more than a little cold. Even with the new symptoms, I was still too stubborn to let it affect my training. I pushed though the pain as best as I could. When my coaches pulled me aside and told me they were concerned about my health and wanted me to take a few days off, I finally broke down and went to the doctor.

At the end of my visit I felt even more frustrated than when I went in. They ran what felt like hundreds of tests and still couldn't tell me for sure what was going on. The only two tests we couldn't get instantaneous results for were a bone marrow aspirate and a blood test that would rule out any sort of blood borne disease. All the basic stuff had already been ruled out. I was sent home and told to rest until they got the last of the results back. A week later I got the call I was dreading, and the doctor confirmed the worst of my fears. I had Leukemia.

In what seemed like seconds, my whole life changed. The good news was that although the form of Leukemia I had was rare, it hadn't spread to my lymph nodes, and therefore was still treatable. The bad news was that it meant an indefinite end to my skating career. That also meant an end to my hopes of becoming an Olympic gold medalist. Even if I did beat the cancer, it would take me years to get back into shape. By that time I would be well past my prime skating years. I couldn't do anything but watch as my hopes and dreams came crashing down around me.

It didn't take long after that for things to get set in motion; I was told everything was time sensitive so I needed to start treatment as soon as possible. Within a few weeks of the diagnosis I was set to start chemotherapy.

The first few months were the hardest; nothing I could have done would have prepared me for the harshness of the chemo treatments. I lost my hair, I lost my strength, and worst of all, I lost my friends when I needed them most. With the competition season at its peak, it seemed that all of my so-called friends had much better things to do than to coming to check on me. Besides my family, the only callers I got were sports reporters who wanted to know why I disappeared from the skating scene and when I would be back. It felt like adding salt to an already open wound, when I had to tell them that chances were that I would _never_ return.

The chemo lasted a year, and by the end I was more than ready to be done. Everything around me constantly reminded of what my life was like before the Leukemia. I was tired of seeing the reports and headlines that talked about the girl that almost made it to the top. I was tired of hearing how _great_ all my old skating friends were doing in competition, and who was the top ranked skater at the time. I was tired of people pretending to care, when really they only felt sorry for me. I needed to get away from it all.

The only reason my mom and I had stayed in Colorado Springs was so that I would be closer to a good hospital, but with the chemo ending, there was no longer any reason for me to stay there. As soon as the treatments were done, and I was well enough, we made plans to move back to our home in the mountains. My family was thrilled at the prospect if getting me home, and I couldn't wait to be back in a place where I felt loved and had a real support system, and not just the fake sympathy I was getting in Colorado Springs.

A little over three months after we moved back, and six months after my last treatment, I had my final bone biopsy. The results came back clean and I was officially considered cancer free; for the time being I was in the clear. The doctors told me there was still a chance of relapse, and with my form of Leukemia it was more likely, but I was just excited to know that for now my life could go back to being somewhat normal.

I started to attend the local high school, and by some sort of miracle, and my extra good study ethics, I was set to graduate on time with the rest of my class. I even made a few real friends. However unlike the rest of seniors in my class, my time was not being occupied by filling out college applications, or planning what to do post graduation. Since I was still at high risk for relapse, and still weak from the treatments, my parents were not going to let me out of their sight. That meant college was out of the question. I once again felt trapped by my illness. It only got worse when all my new friends left for school in the fall; at that point I was trapped _and_ alone.

Over the next few months my life started to swirl downward and I was headed towards depression. I hated the person I was becoming, and I knew if I didn't find an out soon I was going to end up driving my self crazy. In this case, luck was on my side.

My sister, Alicia, was preparing to graduate from medical school and had applied for several residency programs. Then, out of the blue, she was offered a residency that she didn't even apply for in Washington, working with a Dr. Carlisle Cullen. She accepted without a second thought. The only downside was that she'd have to move from her current home in Portland, Oregon to somewhere closer to her place of residency. Her problem quickly became my way to freedom.

Alicia and I had always been close, and after four years of living alone during med school, she was ready for some company. Shortly after getting the job offer, she called me and invited me to move to Washington with her. All I had to do was convince my parents that it was a good idea. Thankfully, it didn't take much. They knew as well as I did that since Alicia was a doctor, she would be capable of taking care of me if something went wrong. I also pointed out that it would make me much happier, and therefore _healthier,_ to finally get away. The last two months flew by, and I now stood looking at the small two story house that I would be calling home.

The outside looked welcoming. Even with the grayish white paint that matched the clouds covering the sky, and producing the seemingly never ending rain. My sister's green SUV was already parked in the driveway. She had driven it up form Portland a few weeks before, filled with some of her things, so that she could start setting up before I got there. All of my things, along with all of the furniture and left over boxes from Alicia's apartment, were piled in the back of the moving truck that we had just driven from Colorado.

"The window that faces the front yard is your room. It has a great view, so I thought you would like it better than the other one." Alicia's voice made me jump. I was in such a trance that I hadn't even noticed her get out of the truck and come to stand next to me.

"Thanks." I smiled back at her. "So what do we unpack first?"

"_We_ don't unpack anything. With the way you have been acting today, I don't want you straining yourself. Mom would have my head if you got sick within the first day of being here. So, _you _are going to rest for the rest of the day."

I glared at my sister. I hated being babied, and she knew it.

"So, you're just going to do it _all_ by yourself?" I challenged.

"No, that's why my friends offered to help. They should be here any minute."

One of Alicia's friends, Seth, lived in the area, and had offered to help get us moved into our new place. Apparently, he had also wrangled up a few friends to join the fun.

If I had to be honest, I was mildly interested to finally meet the mysterious Seth Clearwater. I had heard about nothing else since before we left Colorado.

Alicia and Seth were neighbors when she lived in Portland. They had become good friends right from the start and started hanging out together whenever they could. A few months ago, something happened and Seth decided it would be best to move back to Washington where he would be closer to his friends and family. Before he moved, he promised Alicia he would stay in touch. He stayed true to his word, and in the end it benefited Alicia more than she ever expected.

Seth had a personal connection to Dr. Cullen, and it was due to his glowing recommendation that she got her residency. In other words, his friendship solidified her position. It was also due to his friendship that we had a place to live. We were renting the house from Seth's step-father, Charlie. It belonged to him before he got married to Seth's mother. My sister swore there was nothing going on between her and Seth, but I wasn't so sure. He gave her an awful lot for being "just friends".

One thing was for sure, I wasn't going to just sit around while everyone else worked. I rolled my eyes at my sister. "Do you honestly expect me to just sit in my room and do nothing for the rest of the day? I'm not going to be able to sleep with all the commotion going on. Plus, I'm not even remotely tired seeing all I did was sleep for the last five hours, _and_ even if I was tired, I don't even have a bed to sleep in yet. There has got to be _something_ I can do."

It looked like Alicia was about to give me that "Do what I say, I'm the doctor" look, and then changed her mind.

"Actually, I do have something you could do. Would you run to the grocery store and pick up something for dinner? I figure if these guys are willing to work for free, the least we can do is offer to cook them dinner."

It wasn't really what I had in mind, but at least it was _something_. I needed to drop off my prescription anyway. If the pharmacy in Forks was anything like the one back home, it would take them awhile to get everything approved and then order the medication I needed. I wasn't out yet, but I also didn't want to chance running out in a few weeks.

"Sure. That will give me a chance to drop off my prescription anyway. What do you want me to get?"

My sister considered it for a minute before answering. "We need something that can feed a lot of people. From what Seth tells me these guys are _not_ small. What about something like spaghetti and meatballs? That should be easy enough to make."

I nodded in agreement and grabbed my sister's keys.

It didn't take me long to find the grocery store. It was in the middle of Main Street, which was only about ten blocks from our house. If it hasn't been for the rain, and the fact that I had to carry the bags by myself, I probably could have ridden my bike there.

I found everything I needed pretty quickly, then decided to walk around for awhile to waste time. I didn't want to get back too fast and then be ordered to sit still for the rest of the day. It really frustrated me that everyone still thought of me as fragile and weak. Especially Alicia – she had never acted like that before. In fact, usually she was the only one who understood where I was coming from. I really hoped this afternoon's lecture was only because I hadn't been feeling well the day before, and not the start of some new "I must be my sister's protector" routine.

A half hour later I was walking out the door with everything I needed to make a delicious spaghetti dinner including the ingredients for my famous Quick Set Tiramisu. After all, what was dinner without desert?

When I got home the moving operation was in full swing. It had temporarily stopped raining and it looked like our "movers" had taken full advantage of that fact. Boxes scattered the front lawn and, I could see more stacked in the front hallway through the open front door. No one was outside, so I assumed they had all gone inside.

I grabbed my grocery bags from the passenger seat and jumped out of the car, but I had forgotten that just because it had stopped raining, didn't mean the ground was dry. My feet hit a slippery spot right outside the car door and my groceries and I went flying. Right before I hit the ground, a pair of warm arms grabbed me and stood me back up.

"Whoa, there! Careful!" a deep voice said. Once I was steady on my feet, I turned around to thank my rescuer. I was shocked at what I saw.

Before me stood a tall, half naked, angel; there was just no other word to describe him. I had never seen anyone so gorgeous in my life. My eyes drifted over his body and took in every feature. His dark hair and skin stood out in contrast to my own pale skin and blonde hair. His body was very well built; every perfectly sculpted muscle was accented by the light coming from behind us.

"You must be Alicia's sister. I'm Jake. Here, let me help you with those." The angel's voice – Jake, I mentally corrected myself – broke my trance.

"Oh! Sure! Um…Thanks." I stumbled over my words as I picked up the scattered groceries and handed Jake all but one of the bags. I heard him laugh to himself and wondered if he got that kind of response a lot. It wouldn't surprise me. The boy was hot!

I followed Jake into the house and into the small kitchen where Alicia was already unpacking dishes into the cupboards. She looked up as we entered the room.

"You're back! Great! And just in time, too. I think the guys just unloaded your bed and got it upstairs. I'll take you up there so you can tell them where you want it. I'll introduce you to the guys as we go. You already met Jake, and this is Embry." She motioned to another tall, dark, and handsome man as he entered the kitchen behind us. Embry smiled shyly and waved to acknowledge the introduction.

I set the bag in my hand down and followed my sister back into the main hallway and up the stairs. I was going to have to get used to the close quarters in this house; our house back in Colorado was much bigger.

We turned the corner at the top of the stairs and ran into another one of the guys. I was starting to wonder what they put in the water up here, or if steroid use was common on the reservation. These guys were all huge! The other funny thing I noticed was that for some reason, none of them seemed to be wearing shirts. I knew they must have worked up a sweat carrying stuff in and out of the house, but even taking that into effect, it didn't seem warm enough to be shirtless. I was in a long sleeve shirt and I felt chilled. I couldn't imagine they stayed warm like that.

"Hi! I'm Quil," the new guy said, introducing himself.

"I'm Courtney." I reached out to shake Quil's hand and instead found myself being pulled in to a hug.

I heard Alicia laugh from behind me. "Quil doesn't do handshakes, just hugs," she explained.

Quil released me and stepped away.

"I was just coming down to get you and see where you wanted your bed. Seth is waiting in your room to help move it." He motioned me towards an open door down the hallway.

I stepped into the doorway of my new room and paused to look around. The room had obviously been owned by a girl at some point. There were small feminine accents that stood out all around the room, such as the yellowed lace curtains, and the candle sconces that decorated the walls. The walls were light blue, and looked as if they had just been re-painted. I saw a small built-in closet in the corner of the room, and decided it was a good thing I brought my armoire along with me. I wasn't sure all of my clothes were going to fit in that tiny space. The only furniture in the room at that point was my bed and a small desk that was pushed up against the west wall under the window. It was a small room, but it was perfect.

As my eyes swept over the room one last time, they fell on a tall figure standing in the corner. If Jake was an angel, this man was a god. His lean body was perfectly sculpted in every way. His black hair was cropped into a short buzz cut with exception of the few stands in the front that were spiked up with gel. His bronze skin almost seemed to glisten in the sunlight from the window. And he had the sweetest smile I had ever seen. If this was Seth, my sister was crazy for not falling for him.

Alicia's voice broke through my trance and confirmed my thoughts. "Seth, this is my sister Courtney. Courtney, meet Seth."

Seth reached toward me and I herd Quil laugh as I jumped slightly in anticipation of another possible hug. Instead, he just grabbed my outstretched hand. As he shook my hand, I looked up and was lost in a sea of chocolate brown. Suddenly, what could only be described as electricity coursed through our joined hands. Seth quickly dropped my hand as if he felt it too, but never looked away. Our eyes stayed locked in a stare.

"I uh…It's um…Nice to meet you?" Seth stumbled over his words and the last part sounded more like a question than a statement.

"Where do you want the…um…the couch? I mean...the bed! Where do you want your bed?"

Quil's laughter startled me and I finally looked away from Seth. I heard him mumble something under his breath, but I couldn't be sure of what it was. Something about _it_ happening, I thought. But that didn't make much sense. Then again the way Seth was acting didn't make much sense either.

I glanced around the room getting back to the task at hand. "Up against the east wall would work well. Don't you think so Ali?"

My sister nodded her agreement, and Quil moved to help Seth with the bed. Once it was in place, Seth glanced up towards me for approval, and our eyes locked again. A huge grin covered his face and all I could do was smile back. Either I was going crazy, or there was something going on, and I didn't think I was the only one to notice it.

"Well that's the last of the big stuff, Ali." Seth looked away again and seemed to have gotten his words back, or at least for the most part. "Ali" had always been a family nickname, and Alicia would kill anyone else that called her that. Then again, Seth was one of her best friends in Portland, so maybe she let him adopt the nickname too.

"Great! Well, I think Courtney and I are going to go get started on dinner. You guys are all welcome to stay and eat, we should have more than enough." My sister turned back towards the bedroom door.

At the mention on food, Quil seemed to disappear, and after Alicia left, Seth and I were alone. Our eyes met again, and the electricity from earlier seemed to return and permeate the room. It was almost as if I was being drawn to him, like he was pulling me in.

"Courtney? Are you coming?" my sister called up the stairs.

"Coming!" I called back to her. "I really hope you'll stay. I want to get to know you guys better." I smiled at Seth one last time and headed for the stairs.

_And when I say you guys, I mean Seth, _I thought to myself.

The front door had remained open, and the sun had just started to fade as I passed. I glanced behind me and back up the stairs. The whole day had been great, I finally felt like I was in a place that I could actually call home. And the best part was, I was pretty sure I had already found my best friend, and maybe more. His name was Seth Clearwater.

**AN: Well at least it was a long one right? Hehe! Thank you to my faithful Reviewers! ****You guys rock my world! ****You got me over the 25 review hump. Hoping for at least 10 more this go around. :-) And also thank you to all the Alerters/Favoriters(I know those aren't real words). Until Next time...(which hopefully will be soon!) :-)**


	10. Chapter 10: First Sight

**AN: Hello Everyone! *ducks as flying objects are thrown her direction* It's been four months...I know! I'm really sorry about that and if you will bear with me momentarily I can explain why! So about three months ago I was frantically typing Chapter 10 and trying my best to get it finished and updated...during that time I was not sleeping well, not hanging out with my RL friends, and not taking care of ME...it wasn't okay! As you can imagine, I had a bit of a breakdown. I almost quit writing all together...but after a talk from some awesome people(you know who you are ;-)) and a week where I didn't even open my fic document I realized that I didn't want to quit/didn't NEED to quit. I just needed to take a step back. So that is what I did! Writing started out as something that is fun for me...a way to relax and unwind. But when I crossed that line, and blurred RL with fiction it wasn't fun anymore...it was a burden. I can't let it get that way again! So...in short what I am saying is that updates may take a bit longer from now on. I'm going to try my best to get a chapter a month, but RL needs to come first...so at times it may be longer. I realize I may lose some of you as readers for that, but that is a sacrifice THIS author is willing to make. I don't need a 1,000 reviews and followers...just a few loyal readers, and the knowledge that I did my best! THAT is what really matters...that at the end of the day I am still having fun! :-) *steps off soap box* Phew! Got that off my shoulders :-) Now on to bigger and better things...like an update! LOL**

**Thank you as always to my WONDERFUL Beta justaskalice! She is a true inspiration to me! Talk about a girl who knows how to balance FF and RL! ;-) And speaking of my wonderful Beta...you should all check out my O/S "Changing Destiny"! It was my Christmas(haha I posted THAT 2 months late too!) present to her...AND it was entered in the Bathed in Black contest where it won a "Honorable Mention" of sorts. :-)(Gotta love Self Pimpage ;-P)**

**And after a LONG AN here FINALLY is the chapter you all have waited SO LONG for! :-)  
**

Chapter Ten: Seth: First Sight

When it came to the issue of imprinting, I wasn't like the rest of my un-imprinted brothers. For most of the single guys, the idea of imprinting consumed their lives. They were always on the lookout for "the one"— wondering when they were going to meet her and who she was. I, on the other hand, felt like there was more to life then just searching for a girl that I didn't even know existed. I didn't mind being one of the "Bachelor Boys," as Jake liked to call us. I was content being single. That's not to say I didn't think about imprinting at _all. _Who wouldn't be thrilled to find their soul mate? I just didn't let it overtake the other important things in life.

I knew that the reality was not all of us were going to imprint anyway. So why worry about something that may never happen? I just figured fate had another plan for me. Today, fate proved me wrong.

The day started out like any other. The only thing that kept it from being completely boring was that my friend Alicia and her sister Courtney were moving into their new house. I had promised my help. I also convinced my pack brothers to come along as reinforcements so we could get things done faster.

When we pulled up to the old Swan house in Forks, it looked like the girls were already there. It was going to be good to see the house in the hands of girls again. It needed a feminine touch after standing empty for years, then getting taken over by me; who knew nothing about decorating, or keeping things tidy.

Charlie had offered to let me live there after I moved back to La Push. He figured that after a few years of living alone, I would want my privacy. At first it was fun to have the place to myself, but I got lonely since the rest of the pack lived on the Rez. It also made my patrol runs longer, since I had to add on the amount of time it took to get to La Push and back.

When my friend from college, Alicia, called to let me know she was moving to Forks with her sister, I told her I had the perfect place for them. I took the opportunity to move back to La Push and got a place with Colin, Brady, and Embry. It was the new pack bachelor pad!

As we approached the back of the moving truck, I saw that the door was open and Alicia was already starting to get some of the boxes unpacked. I snuck up behind her and made her jump so high she nearly dropped the box that was in her hands.

"Hey! That wasn't very nice!" She put the box down and turned around to face me with a smile on her face.

I smiled back and pulled her into a hug. "Yeah, well, no one ever accused me of being nice. I thought you would have learned that by now."

"I've missed you, Seth! It hasn't been the same without my adopted little brother torturing me on a regular basis." She laughed and punched my shoulder after I let her go.

"Speaking of brothers, let me introduce you to the guys." I motioned back to the rest of the guys in my pack, who stood watching my exchange with Alicia. The suspicion in their eyes told me that they were questioning my relationship with her. I had told them all that we were just friends, but our actions and friendly flirting was indicating something more. I would have to set them all straight later; I didn't want them to get the wrong idea about us, we _were_ just friends.

"This is Jake, Embry. and Quil." I paused to point at each guy as I named them.

"Hi! Nice to meet all of you. I'm Alicia." She stepped forward to shake each of their hands. When she got to Quil he ignored her outstretched hand and pulled her into a hug.

"I don't shake; just hug." Quil explained as he released her. She looked slightly taken aback but laughed anyway.

"Well, I guess I should let you guys get to work. Let me know if you need anything or need to know where stuff goes. I'll try to stay out of your way as much as possible. Oh, and if you see another girl that looks like me wandering around, that's my sister Courtney. She's out running some errands right now, but when she gets back I'll make sure to introduce you." Alicia picked up the box she had put down moments earlier and headed for the house.

Things happened quickly and ran very smoothly after that. With all of us working together, we had everything unloaded from the truck in a little under an hour. Luckily, the rain had decided to stop, and we used that to our advantage. The last things to get moved were the girl's beds.

Quil and I had just finished getting Courtney's bed into her room when we heard a car door slam outside the house. I guessed that it was probably Alicia's sister, back from running errands.

I didn't know much about Courtney. During our time in Portland, Alicia hadn't said a lot about her. What I did know was that their family was close. Alicia had a lot of pictures in her apartment that showed the whole family together. For some reason, my eyes were always drawn to one certain girl. She always had the biggest smile on her face, like she didn't have a care in the world. I was both excited and intrigued to finally meet this mysterious girl.

My curiosity got the best of me and I peeked through the curtains just in time to see a petite blonde step out of a blue SUV and then proceed to slip on a wet spot and almost fall. Luckily, Jake was there to save her.

As I watched Jake catch her, I felt a sudden wave of emotion come over me. Jealousy filled my heart. I wanted to be in Jake's place, with my arms around her, not just watching from the window as it all happened. It didn't make sense to me, I hadn't even met this girl, why was I suddenly feeling possessive over her? I stepped away from the window in attempt to get a hold of my self.

Quil noticed my reaction and gave me a strange look. "What's up, man? You look like you just saw a ghost."

"Nothing, sorry….just got distracted for a minute." I shook my head in attempt to clear it, but all I could think of was going back to the window in hopes of catching another glance of the girl I assumed to be Courtney. I didn't know what had come over me.

"Okay, whatever, man." Quil raised his eyebrows and shook his head. Clearly I wasn't fooling him. "Well, since Courtney is here, I'm going to go grab her so she can show us where she wants the bed."

After Quil left, I tried to collect myself again. I took a few deep breaths, and attempted to clear my mind. Nothing I tried worked. I was still thinking of nothing but the girl I had just seen. It was almost as if her very being was drawing me in; like a vampire was drawn to blood.

Quil hadn't made it far before he ran into the girls; I could hear them talking out in the hall. I easily zeroed in on the only voice I didn't know. It was soft and higher in pitch, and had an almost Alice-like ring to it when she laughed. I found myself imagining a face to go with that voice. My heart beat wildly in anticipation of the first look.

Minutes later my wish was granted, as the same girl I had seen moments earlier outside stepped into the doorway. None of the images I had just conjured up came even close to reality. She was beautiful. Her hair fell in gentle waves around her face, barely touching her shoulders. Her body had an athletic build, but she was in no way bulky or overly muscular. Her fair skin stood out in contrast to the dark hallway behind her. And although our eyes never met, I saw a flash of bright blue as she looked around the room. I couldn't help but smile.

"Seth, this is my sister, Courtney. Courtney, meet Seth." Alicia's voice barely broke through the haze that now surrounded the girl in front of me and blocked out everyone else in the room.

I could feel Courtney's eyes on me as I stepped forward to officially meet her. I had to force my hand to remain steady as I reached out and clasped her small hand in my own. My eyes drifted to her face and our eyes met.

In that instant my whole world changed. All my emotions from earlier suddenly made sense. I _was_ being drawn to her. Courtney was my imprint.

I had heard my imprinted brothers tell their stories of what it was like to imprint. I had even seen it firsthand through the mind link a few times. But nothing they told me could compare to how it _really _felt. The girl in front of me — Courtney, I repeated her name over and over again in my mind — became the center of my very being. My breaths synchronized with hers, and I was almost sure that even our heartbeats became one. Nothing else existed; it was just me and her.

An electric current surged through our joined hands. I wasn't sure if she felt it too but I reluctantly dropped her hand anyway. If she did feel it, I wasn't sure how she would react, and the last thing I wanted right now was for her to be afraid of me.

I realized I had been staring at her for longer than was socially acceptable and I should say something.

"I uh…It's um…Nice to meet you?" My statement came out more like a question. I tried again. "Where do you want the…um…the couch? I mean…the bed! Where do you want your bed?" Apparently my brain and mouth were no longer connected because I couldn't form a real sentence anymore.

Quil's laughter broke the silence and Courtney finally looked away, breaking our intense stare. I chanced a glance at him and quickly and quietly mouthed the words, "_It_ happened" to him. His eyes lit up in recognition and he smiled in congratulations.

"Up against the east wall would work well. Don't you think so, Ali?" Courtney's voice brought my attention back to her and the task at hand, moving her bed.

Alicia nodded in agreement to and Quil and I moved to opposite ends of the bed to lift it in to place.

Moving the bed required me to concentrate on something other than Courtney for just long enough for the full impact of everything to finally click. I had found my soul mate, my other half, my perfect match. It also clicked that I had absolutely _no_ clue as to what I should do next. Now was one of the times I would have been grateful to have one of my brothers on my head. I locked eyes with Quil and tried to relay my thoughts to him through my expressions. I wasn't sure if he fully understood but he nodded and mouthed the words "We'll talk later." His back was to the girls, so I was pretty sure it was safe to say there was no chance that they saw our little exchange.

Once the bed was in place I glanced back at Courtney to make sure she was happy with where it was. It also gave me an excuse to get lost in those gorgeous sapphire eyes again. I could feel a grin cover my face.

"Well that's the last of the big stuff, Ali." I again reluctantly looked away from Courtney to see if Alicia needed anything else. At first I didn't understand the dirty look I received but then I remembered that Alicia _hated_ being called "Ali" by anyone other then her family.

_Geez Seth! Get a hold of yourself! One more mistake, and she is sure to know something is up! _I lectured my self internally.

"Great! Well, I think Courtney and I are going to go get started on dinner. You guys are all welcome to stay and eat, we should have more than enough." Alicia's voice again interrupted my thoughts.

Alicia and Quil exited the room and I suddenly found myself alone with Courtney. I wanted to say something to break the awkward silence, but I still wasn't sure I would be able to talk without sounding like a fool. Then our eyes locked again, and I was _positive_ I wouldn't be able to speak.

I wasn't sure how long we stood there, eyes locked in a staring match. It felt like hours, though it was probably just minutes. I didn't hear Alicia call out to Courtney again, but she must have because Courtney yelled "Coming!" and turned to leave the room.

Just before she disappeared down the stairs, she turned and smiled at me one last time. "I really hope you'll stay. I want to get to know you guys better."

One thing was for sure, I would _definitely_ be staying for dinner. Anything to be around Courtney for awhile longer, but first I needed to talk to one of the guys. This whole imprint thing was still new to me. I had no clue how to act, or what I should or shouldn't tell her. I needed advice and I needed it soon.

The first person I ran into at the bottom of the stairs was Jake. I gave him a "I need to talk" look and pulled him outside.

"What's up, Killer? You look like you just saw a ghost!"

I shot Jake a dirty look. "Did Quil tell you to say that?"

Jake just laughed. "Maybe…"

I would get back at them later. For the time being I had more important things to discuss.

"Well, if you _did_ talk to Quil, than you should know what's up. I imprinted...on Courtney." I paused and smiled. I loved the way those two words sounded rolling off my tongue. "The problem is, I have _no_ clue what to do. I need your help, Jake. How do I handle imprinting?"

Jake laughed again. I wasn't sure if he was taking this seriously or not. I was going to give him a few more minutes and if he didn't straighten, out I was going to find someone else to talk with. Then again the only other alternative was Quil, so I guess I was screwed either way.

"Jake, come on man. I'm serious! I _need_ you on this one. You owe it to me as my Alpha and my friend."

"Lighten up, Seth. I'm just kidding with you. Actually, I'm really excited for you. You're part of the in-crowd now." Jake slapped my shoulder and smiled at me again. "So…what do you need help with? Other than getting that dazed and confused look off your face."

I choose to ignore Jake's last comment and just started asking my questions.

"Well for starters, what do I do now? I barely even met this girl, and I'm head over heals for her, but I can't tell _her _that. Can you imagine how that would sound? And then there is the whole wolf thing…how do I explain _that_ to her? And _when_ do I explain that to her? And then do I tell her about imprinting or keep that part a secret? " I was talking a mile a minute and I could tell I was quickly losing Jake.

"Whoa there, Killer. Take a deep breath and _slow down._ One thing at a time!"

I took a deep breath and started over. "I just don't know to approach this whole imprint thing. I need advice from someone who's been there and can tell me what to do."

"That's much better. I can actually understand you now! Now, first things first. You don't need to worry about this, Seth. Imprinting is part of who you are. Just be yourself and let nature do the rest. As for where things stand with Courtney, just be her friend to begin with. Part of imprinting, is being whatever your imprint needs at the time. Right now, she needs someone that she can trust in a new place. Take it slow! Get to know her, and let her get to know you. Things will naturally progress on their own, and when the timing is right you can take it to the next level."

Everything Jake said made perfect sense. I just had to play it cool for a while and let things progress naturally.

"What if I mess up? Or say something wrong? I don't want to risk losing her because of something stupid that I did."

"You're not perfect, Seth. You're still human, and you're _going _to mess up. Geez, I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've messed up with Ness. But she always forgives me, and Courtney will forgive you too. You're meant to be together, and in the end, she won't be able to help falling in love with you."

Something in Jake's voice made me think that he wasn't just talking about _my_ imprint. His feelings for Ness had recently changed, and she hadn't reciprocated that yet. His insecurity was starting to show.

"Hey, Jake, make sure you're listening to your own advice. Ness will come around in time." I smiled back at him.

Jake just shook his head and let out a sigh. "Yeah, I know…but this isn't about me and Ness. It's about you. Take my advice; take it slow, and in the end it will all come together perfectly."

"What about the wolf thing? When do I bring that up?"

"To be honest, Seth, I may not be the best one to give you advice on that one. Since Renesmee was a part of _that _world from the very beginning, I never had to tell her about it. Maybe ask Quil or Jared if they have any better advice, but, if it were me I would _definitely_ wait to hit her with that one. Let her get to know your human side first."

My talk with Jake made me feel much better about things, at least for the time being. My plan was simple: just take things one step at a time, and let nature do the rest. My biggest challenge was going to be keeping my own emotions in check. I was already falling in love with Courtney, but I didn't want to push her into anything she wasn't ready for.

"Thanks for helping, Jake!"

"No problem, little bro." Jake reached over and tried to ruffle my hair, but I ducked just in time. "Now, before we go back inside let's practice something. Repeat after me, "Hi, Courtney, my name is, Seth." If you can get that out without stumbling, then I can call Quil and cancel the speech therapy class we enrolled you in."

I could hear Quil laughing from across the yard. He had just come outside and was walking towards us.

I waited until Quil was close enough to hear me without being too loud. "Very funny, you two. But I don't think I'm the one who needs therapy, I didn't imprint on a _baby_." It didn't matter what they threw at you. Pulling the baby card shut both Quil and Jake up every time.

"Whatever, Seth. You're just jealous that it took you longer to find your imprint, right, Jake?"

Jake just nodded.

"Well, speaking of _Courtney_, the reason I came out here in the first place is because the girls want to know how many of us are staying for dinner. I already told them I'm out. I have to watch Claire tonight. I'm fairly sure Embry is going to call it a night as well. He's still recovering from his Leah heartbreak, and I don't think this whole imprint thing has helped matters. He is well aware of the fact that he is now the _only _remaining pack member without an imprint, and he's _not_ taking it well. So, that leaves you two. I told Alicia I would hunt you down and send you their way."

"You're staying, right?" I looked at Jake hoping he would say yes. I didn't want to be the only one staying, I needed backup incase I started acting like an idiot again.

"I don't know Seth…I promised Ness she could steal me for the rest of the day. She's probably already upset things took this long. I don't want to keep her waiting much longer."

"Come on, Jake! Please stay? I'll even call Ness so you won't have to take the blame." At this point I was willing to try anything to keep Jake there.

Jake shook his head no. "She's still going to be mad. Trust me, I know her."

"Not if I tell her about imprinting….I'm sure she will understand. Come on man! Please?" I resorted to begging, but the look on Jake's face told me I still wasn't going to win this one.

"Sorry, Seth! I can't!"

There was no point in begging anymore. I didn't blame him for not wanting to stay. I now knew first hand what it felt like to want to spend all my time with my imprint. I was already feeling an ache in my chest and I had only been away from Courtney for about ten minutes. I was sure it was worse for Jake; he hadn't seen Ness in almost two days.

With that decided, we headed back to the house. Embry was headed out as we walked back in. He looked miserable.

"Hey guys. I think I'm going to head out, try to get some rest before I run tonight. Am I still with you tonight Seth?"

I had forgotten I was scheduled to run overnight patrols. That meant I wouldn't get much time with Courtney after all. Jake stopped me before I could answer.

"Actually, I'm taking over for Seth tonight, Embry. I think you and I need to talk. I want to make sure you are doing okay with everything that's going on."

This was one of the reasons Jake made such a great Alpha. He always put the pack first, regardless of what was going on in his own life. Right now, Embry needed him. It also benefited me; I would have to thank him for that later.

"Thanks, Jake. I'll see you at nine then. Bye, guys." Embry waved, then headed towards the door with Quil close behind.

They had only taken a few steps outside when Courtney came around the corner from the kitchen. All it took was one look and the ache in my chest disappeared.

"Embry, wait! Quil, you too!" Both of the guys turned around at the sound of her voice.

"Alicia wanted me to give you these, since you can't stay. The top one is spaghetti and the bottom is some of my homemade tiramisu. It should stay warm until you get home, but if you decide to eat it later, make sure to put it in the fridge. Oh, and there is garlic bread in the ziplock." After the guys took their food, and said thank you and goodbye, Courtney turned back to us.

"So, what's the verdict, guys? Do we need to make more to go boxes or are you two staying? Personally, I really hope, _someone_ is staying! We have a ton of spaghetti and there is no way we can finish it alone." She smiled and looked right at me. My heart began to race.

Jake answered first. "Sorry to disappoint you, Courtney, but I promised a friend I would see her tonight. If I stay I will probably miss my oppourtuinty."

Courtney's smile turned into a frown and her shoulders dropped. I kind of wanted to smack Jake for making her feel sad. Then, suddenly she was smiling again.

"Jake, do you and your friend have plans set already?"

He shook his head no.

"In that case, why don't you guys just hang here? We will have plenty to eat, so she is more than welcome to join us for dinner. Plus, I would love to meet a few more people in this little town!" Courtney paused, "That is unless you guys wanted to be alone. I didn't even stop to consider this may be a date. Sorry!" Courtney was blushing, and it was one of the cutest things I had ever seen.

Jake just laughed. "No, you're not intruding at all. Actually, I think Ness might enjoy getting to know some girls her own age. Let me give her a call, and I'll find out if she is okay with the plan too."

Jake stepped outside leaving me and Courtney alone in the hall. The same electric feeling from earlier filled the room again. With the way Courtney was looking at me, I wondered if she felt it too. I decided I should try to break the silence. I momentarily looked away to try to break the spell.

"So…are you excited to be in Forks? It's a small town, so I know it must seem like there isn't much to do, but it'll grow on you."

When I looked back Courtney was smiling and I nearly lost my train of thought again.

"I grew up in a small town, so the size is nothing new to me. I'm just happy to get away from everything that I left behind. Get a new start. And I'm really excited to get to know some new people. Unfortunately, back home I didn't have many friends."

I wanted to ask her what she left behind in Colorado, but it seemed personal, and I didn't want to pry. Especially if it was a painful memory; there would be plenty of time to help her with that later.

"Well, you already have a great start. With me and the other guys, that makes four new friends in one day. And if Jake gets Renesmee to say yes, that'll be five. You're going to love her!"

Courtney narrowed her eyes and tilted her head. "Ray- Nez, what?"

I had to laugh. I remembered back to the first time I was introduced to Edward and Bella's daughter. I had the same problem with pronouncing her name correctly. It was much easier to understand when you sounded it out phonetically, so I broke it down for her.

"Ruh-nez-may. It's a combination of family names, I think. But she goes by Ness or Nessie for short."

Courtney laughed. "Now Ness I can handle."

Just then, Jake came back inside, and we both looked up expectantly.

"Ness said to count us in. She's on her way. We probably won't stay too long after dinner though, we have a few things to do in La Push before we call it a night."

"Great! Well, I'm going to go set another place then. Make yourselves at home." Courtney turned back to the kitchen and disappeared out of sight.

I smiled at Jake. "Well, it looks like I get my wingman after all. Not that I need one. I'll have you know I just had a whole conversation and didn't stumble or mess up once!"

"So you can speak! Hallelujah! He's been healed!" Jake laughed. I glared at him.

"So it wasn't as hard as you thought to get Ness to agree to dinner huh?"

"Yeah, well she was just happy to get out of the house; Emmett was driving her crazy. Plus, she was really excited to meet Courtney and Alicia. She said it would be great to finally have some _girl _friends around, and not just us guys all the time. I think we may be asking for trouble by introducing our imprints to each other. With as eager as they both are, they will be best friends in no time."

I laughed. "If they are anything like Emily and your sister, we better prepare to get ganged up on. There will be no stopping them, once they join forces."

Jake laughed. "Yeah, well them to bring it on. Imprints or not, we could take them any day, any time!"

Jake and I high-fived _Top Gun_ style, then bumped fists and both let out a low howl under our breaths; this was our pack handshake.

Jake headed back outside to wait for Renesmee, and I headed into the kitchen to see if the girls needed any help.

It only took Ness about twenty minutes to get to the house. She and Jake walked in right as Alicia was putting the main course on the table. As she entered the kitchen, Ness stopped to introduce herself to the girls. When she went to shake hands with Courtney she paused and started at her. She hadn't stopped when we all sat down and I could tell it was making Courtney uncomfortable. Ness finally caught on to the situation and explained herself after apologizing.

"Sorry, I don't mean to stare. You just look really familiar. You've never been to Forks before?"

Courtney shook her head no. Instead of relaxing, like I thought she should have, she seemed to get more anxious than before. I didn't know what was going on, but I didn't like seeing Courtney so uncomfortable; it made _me _uncomfortable. Unfortunately, Ness wasn't ready to drop it.

"Hmm…At first I just thought you had one of those recognizable faces, but I _know_ I have seen you somewhere! I just can't put my finger on it!"

Courtney shot a quick glance at Alicia. There was obviously something that they didn't want the rest of us to know.

"Wait! I know where I have seen you before. You're Courtney Ryder; figure skating champion! Oh my gosh! My sister, Alice, and I used to watch you in every competition. I'll admit it, I was a huge fan!"

Ness had guessed the secret. Alicia's head snapped up and her eyes locked with Courtney. Courtney's head dropped into her hands and she let out a small groan.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. I just thought...well…I was just excited to be in the presence of a champion."

Courtney was still looking down when she spoke again. "_Ex_-champion. That's not who I am anymore."

The room went silent. We were all waiting for Courtney to continue. When she finally looked up I could see the beginning of what looked like tears collecting in the corner of her eyes. It killed me to see her like this.

Her voice cracked slightly when she spoke again. I could tell she was trying very hard not to cry.

"I guess since you were a fan you probably noticed a few years back when I disappeared from the skating scene all together. I'm sure you also heard the rumors that flew around. I heard everything from injury to death in a car accident, which is obviously false since I'm sitting here today. The truth is, I was diagnosed with leukemia, and because of the nature of the disease I was forced to retire from skating."

I felt my heart break. I had just meet the girl of my dreams, then I found out she had leukemia? Life just couldn't be fair to me, could it?

"After almost a year of treatments, and six more months of recovery, I was tested again and thankfully the biopsy came back clear. For now, I'm in remission. I still have to be tested every six months and I won't officially be considered cancer free until I have three years of negative tests. I'm sorry I didn't tell you all this straight off the bat, but I didn't think anyone would recognize me here, and I really don't want anyone to feel sorry for me. I got enough of that before I moved here. I hope none of you take this personally, I just wanted a normal life for once; one where I wasn't the center of attention. Keeping my identity a secret seemed like the best way to do it. I hope you'll forgive me, I don't want to ruin the best shot I have at making new friends."

Her eyes drifted to me and I could see the sincerity in them. What she didn't know is that even if I tried, it would be impossible for me to _not _forgive her. I was just relived to hear that she was in remission and I wasn't going to loose her anytime in the near future. Ness was the first to say anything.

"Courtney, I'm the one who needs to apologize," she said. "It sounds like things have been rough for the last few years and here I go, bringing it all back up. I don't blame you for wanting to keep a low profile, and if that's what you want than that's what we'll give you. I don't think anyone have any problem treating you like anyone else. We all have our secrets right?"

Ness couldn't have said it better. With the possible exception of Alicia, everyone sitting around the table had secrets. Ness was really a six year old half vampire, Jake and I were shape shifting werewolves, and I was in love with this girl I had barely met. I just hoped Courtney would be as understanding when it came time to hear my truths.

Courtney reached across the table to hug Ness. As they embraced, the smile I loved returned to her face. "Thank you for understanding. It means so much to me to know that I already have a group of people that I can trust." As she returned to her seat a few of the tears she was holding back fell and glistened as they slid down her cheek. She immediately wiped them away. I decided then and there that I would do anything in my power to keep those tears from ever falling again.

"Alright, well now that we have everything out in the open, let's eat. The food is getting cold." Alicia's voice brought us all back to the present. We all reached for the dish nearest to us and started passing what looked and smelled like a delicious meal around the table.

During dinner Jake played up his wingman skills. He and Ness used any excuse possible to get me and Courtney talking. If the conversation ever lulled they would find some way to get it going again. We covered pretty much every topic possible.

One of the funniest parts of the night happened when Alicia told everyone a few of my more embarrassing college stories; many of which even Jake hadn't heard. This sparked an all-out war; each person trying to outdo the last with their most embarrassing story. Courtney dodged the bullet for a while but, Alicia got her eventually. She hid behind her hands and blushed when her sister told the story of her first kiss. I had to feel a little sorry for the guy, she snuck up on him when he was hanging on the monkey bars, and he was so shocked he fell off and nearly broke his neck. No one was spared, and by the end all of us were laughing and all three girls were blushing.

By the time we got to desert, which was by far the best Tiramisu I had ever tasted, things had gotten deep.

Courtney wanted to know more about my family, so I told her all about growing up on the Rez, and our tribe's history. I made sure to leave out the part about some of us having a genetic quirk that made us werewolves. When I got to the part about my father's death my voice dropped in volume. Even after six years, it was hard to talk about losing him. Courtney noticed the change and reached out and gave me a comforting squeeze on the shoulder. That small amount of contact was all it took to get me smiling again.

Then it was her turn. She told me about growing up in a small town in Colorado, and how one of her most cherished memories was skating on the pond behind her house every winter when the ice froze over. As she described it, I could almost picture her gliding over the frozen surface with the wind in her hair and the crisp air turning her cheeks a perfect pink. She said that skating was in her past now, but I could see in her eyes that she missed it.

By the end of dinner I felt like I had made a real connection with Courtney. Things were off to a great start.

Shortly after we finished, Jake and Ness decided to take off. I offered to stick around and help clean up, but Alicia insisted that I had done more than enough already. Alicia said her goodbyes and headed into the kitchen to start the dishes while Courtney walked Jake and Ness and me to the door.

"Thank you so much for inviting me to dinner, I'm really glad I got to meet you. We are definitely going to have to do it again soon." Ness gave Courtney a big hug.

"I'm really glad you decided to come. Maybe next time we can do a girls night. Then you can give me the dirt on this guy." Courtney lightly punched my shoulder. I was slightly caught off guard by her flirting, but I took it as a good sign that she wanted to know more about me.

Jake caught Courtney's actions and apparently couldn't resist the urge to try to embarrass her one last time. "Aw, I think someone has a little crush on our Sethy Poo."

"Jake!" Ness punched Jake in the shoulder and Courtney immediately started blushing again. I had to admit, it was cute to watch her blush. The pink filled her cheeks and went almost all the way to her ears, and even though she tried not too she always ended up smiling. The fact that she was blushing over a comment about me made it even better.

I spoke up to take the attention off Courtney. "Well, I guess we should let Courtney get back to helping Alicia, and let you two go so you can get whatever it is your doing done before midnight. It was good to see you, Ness. Catch you later, Jake." Jake and I bumped fists again and Ness gave me a quick hug. She used the opportunity of her hand on my back to quickly project a message to me.

"_Congrats Seth! She's awesome! Oh, and you should definitely ask her out…I think she likes you! Jake says to phase and tell him how it goes later."_

I smiled and whispered a quick thanks as I let Ness go.

Jake and Ness waved another quick goodbye and headed for Jake's car. After they were gone, I found myself alone on the porch with Courtney. We locked eyes and I noticed she started to blush again. As we stared at each other, Renesmee's words rang in my mind. I had actually been thinking of asking Courtney out all night. My only hesitation was that she would think things were moving too fast since we had just met. Ness's observation gave me the last little bit of courage that I needed. I decided that if I was going to do this, it was now or never. I took a deep breath to try to calm my nerves.

"Well, I should probably get going too. Thanks for having us over. I had a lot of fun tonight."

Courtney's smile got even bigger. "I had a lot of fun too. I'm really glad I met you guys. Like I told Ness, it's just a relief to know that I already have a great group of friends to hang out with."

"So…speaking of hanging out, I was kind of wondering if maybe you would like to go out sometime? Just you and…"

"Yes! I mean…sorry…I'll let you finish." Courtney started blushing again.

I laughed at the fact that she answered my question before I even asked it. "I was going to say just you and me. Like a date. So, is it still a yes?"

Courtney laughed and nodded. "Yes….It's still a yes. Just give me a few weeks to get settled in and then I'm free whenever."

I could feel the smile growing on my face. "Alright, it's a date then. Thanks again, and have a great night."

Courtney headed back into the house and closed the door. As I turned to leave I felt my heart leap in my chest. I had a date, with my imprint. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day.

**AN: There you go! Was it worth the wait? Thank you, Thank you, Thank you to all who reviewed, Alerted, and added to Favs! Even mid-breakdown it made me smile to see them pop up in my in-box! And Thank you in advance for sticking with me during the LONG wait! Hopefully this time it won't be nearly as long! Reviews as always are apprecitated...even if it's just to tell me I suck for making you wait so long. ;-) **

**Up Next: Chapter 11: Renesmee: Show and Tell ;-)(This is something new I am going to start...just a little Chapter title preview to keep you excited ;-))  
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	11. Chapter 11: Show and Tell

**AN: Well that wasn't too long of a wait right? I have a few special shout outs for this chapter before I get going. First off as always thank you to my wonderful Beta justaskalice! Sadly this will be her last chapter for awhile. She has some RL things to take care of and will need to take a break for the summer months(and possibly longer). She will be missed! But I am very happy to announce that my new Beta is jkane180. She is an EXCELLENT writer and Beta, so I'm really excited she said yes! Secondly thank you to BellaGattino and evermineFF for pre-reading/helping with the...ugh..."Special scene" in this chapter(Sorry no spoilers! You will need to read to find out what that special scene is ;-p) Specially since I know how you both REALLY feel about Nessie ;-) And lastly I wanted to thank a special reader for her kind words/support(she doesn't know about this...so it will be a surprise) *drum roll* THANK YOU BeckieT108! - BB you have NO idea how much your kind words have touched me! You have read and reviewed EVERY chapter/fic I have written and some have brought tears to my eyes! So thank you! It means a lot! *sniffle* Also just so you don't think I forgot you/didn't appreciate you thank you to tiffs983, dkgors, laurazuletta18, and michelleroberson2700 who ALSO have reviewed every chapter! Thanks BB's! :-)**

**Ok now on to the chapter!**

**Quick Review: Last time we saw Nessie/Jake(Chapter 8) Nessie had finally come to grips with the fact that she was falling for Jake...and she just needed to tell him how she felt...**

Chapter 11: Renesmee: Show and Tell

_Renesmee_

As Jake and I walked to Jake's car after hanging out with Seth, Alicia, and Courtney, I turned to wave one last time to Seth and Courtney, who were standing on the porch. The night had been fun, and I enjoyed getting to know the girls, but I was really glad when Jake asked me if we were ready to take off. I was more than ready to have him to myself for a while.

Once we were in the car, Jake turned his attention to me.

"So where do you want to go for the rest of the night? We could go to my place, or the meadow, or back to your place. I'm up for just about anything, so your choice. Only stipulation is I need to be ready for patrols by nine."

"Nine? But I didn't think you had to patrol tonight! If I would have known that I would have cut dinner shorter." I gave him a pouty face. If he had to patrol at nine, that only gave me a few hours with him, and I had a lot to discuss.

Jake's eyes shifted in my direction then quickly back to the road. "Sorry, Ness! I know I promised you it would be just you and me tonight. I hadn't planed on Seth imprinting, and you saw how nervous he was. He needed some back up. As for patrols, I need to have a talk with Embry. He's really not doing well since Leah left. I can't stand seeing him so unhappy. I also think Seth's imprint may have made it even worse."

I sighed but resigned anyway. As Alpha it was Jake's duty to be there for his pack.

"Ok…I guess I understand. Well, since we don't have a lot of time let's just head to your place. It's the closest." I wanted to maximize my time with Jake, and this was the best option.

"You got it!" Jake smiled and turned the car towards La Push.

Once we hit the outskirts of town, Jake hit the accelerator. Normally I wouldn't mind the fact that he liked to speed. But tonight I found myself praying that he would slow down. The closer we got to Jake's house the more nervous I felt. Jake must have sensed the change because as we pulled up to his house he turned to me with concern in his eyes.

"You okay, Ness? You haven't said a word since we left Forks, and usually I can't seem to get you to shut up."

"Huh?" I had been going over what I was planning on "telling" Jake, and didn't notice he was talking to me.

Jake laughed. "And that is exactly my point. Your mind is obviously somewhere else. Anything you want to talk about?"

This was one of my favorite things about Jake. He was always willing to lend an ear to listen, or even, a shoulder to cry on. He was everything a best friend should be. But my feelings had changed; I wanted more than a best friend now, and _that_ is what we needed to talk about. The problem was I wasn't quite ready yet. I needed to stall just a little longer.

I let out a sigh. "Sorry, Jake. Just a little distracted I guess. I'll try to be better company."

Jake rolled his eyes. "Come on Ness, I know you better than that. What's really going on?"

"Really, Jake, I'm fine." I tried to smile but I could see Jake wasn't buying it. He could see right through me.

"Is this about the talk with your parents? Did it not go well?" Jake obviously wasn't going to drop the subject so I finally broke. The discussion with my parents was a good introduction to what I really wanted to discuss.

"No, it actually went really well! I got them to see how they were still treating me like a child, and then they agreed that I needed more freedom. I can pretty much do whatever I want now. I just need to check in with them first, so that they still know I am being safe. I can live with that I guess."

"That's great, Ness! See, I told you all you needed to do was talk to them. What did they say about the imprint? Hopefully they weren't too upset with me for telling you."

I laughed nervously. Jake was treading into the danger zone, not that he knew it yet. I wasn't going to be able to stall for much longer. Even if I tried, Jake would eventually get to the bottom of things. He was too smart not to. I figured I should just get the hard part over with. It was like just like talking to my parents all over again. Once I got everything out in the open then I could deal with the consequences. It didn't make me any less nervous.

I shifted my eyes away from Jake and looked out the window. "Dad was more upset than Mom, but it wasn't you they were upset with. They may have given me more freedom, but I don't think either of them is thrilled about where this whole imprint thing may lead."

"What do you mean by where this may lead?" Jake sounded confused.

I took a deep breath. It was now or never. I turned back to Jake.

"Um…well, that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about. Only, I think I can show you better than tell you."

Before Jake could stop me I leaned over and grabbed both of his hands.

The images came quickly thanks to all the practice I had. I wanted to show Jake how our relationship had changed over time.

First I showed him how as a child he was like my protector. Images of him holding me and watching over me flew through my mind and into his. Then I showed him how my protector became more like my older brother. He still watched out for his little sister, but he wasn't afraid to tease me a little too. I heard Jake laugh when I showed him some of my favorite memories: Snowball fights with the pack, hunting with my family, and races that somehow Jake always managed to lose, even when he should have won. As I continued to show Jake my memories I slowly transitioned my point of view from brother, to best friend. I showed him how much it meant to me that he was always there for me; no matter what I needed. The last memory I showed him was the night he told me about the imprint. I felt a small stab of pain in my heart as I watched myself telling him that all I ever wanted was to be friends. At that point I began to blur the past with the future. I stopped showing Jake memories and started showing him what I hoped our future would bring; a transition from best friends to more than friends. The last image I showed him was us sharing a kiss; as we parted my image self leaned over and whispered "I love you, Jacob Black."

As the images faded I released Jake's hands and leaned back against the car door. My hand seemed to automatically migrate towards the latch, as if I knew I might have to make a quick escape.

The silence in the car was intense, I wasn't even sure Jake was breathing. I could tell Jake was deep in thought by the way his eyebrows scrunched together and his eyes rolled towards the ceiling. I wanted to ask what he was thinking, but I was too nervous about his response; so I just waited.

After what seemed like a lifetime Jake finally turned his attention to me and spoke.

"Wow…um…I don't really know where to start. That's a lot to take in. I…When…How…Ugh!" Jake put his head in his hands and shook it like he was trying to clear his mind.

"Do you want to go for a walk? It seems we have a lot to discuss."

I nodded. I was feeling a little flushed due to my nerves. The fresh air may do us both some good.

Jake came around to my side of the car and gave me a small smile as he grabbed my hand and lead me towards the woods.

Most would take his gesture as a good sign, but Jake holding my hand was nothing out of the ordinary. But even that knowledge didn't stop my heart from skipping a beat at his touch.

We walked in complete silence for what felt like forever. In reality it probably wasn't more than a few minutes. Once we reached a small clearing, Jake stopped and turned towards me. I could tell this was it, in a matter of seconds Jake would either crush my hopes, or make my dreams come true.

Jake smiled, but then his smile faded and he looked much more serious. "Ness, what you showed me back there in the car, I just need to know, is that really how you feel about us? Are you really ready to take the next step? I just want you to make sure that this is really your heart telling you this, and not just the influence of people talking _about _things changing. The only reason I'm concerned, is that it wasn't very long ago that you were telling me the exact opposite thing. You wanted me to find love somewhere else. Do you remember that?"

I nodded. I didn't like where I felt like this was going.

Jake opened him mouth to continue, but before he could even get anything out I interrupted him.

"Wait, Jake! Before you continue I need you to know that no matter what your decision is, I don't want it to change who we are together. Even if you don't feel the same way, I still want to be friends. I need you in my life, even if it's just as my best friend." As

I said it I felt my heart breaking, but he needed to know the truth.

Jake nodded. "I want that too, Ness, the imprint demands it! But I don't want to take things to the next level just because it's the natural thing to do. It needs to be from _your _heart, and it just seems like this changed way too fast for that to be true."

I dropped my eyes from Jake's. It was obvious he had made his decision, for now things would stay the same between us.

"I get it Jake…You obviously don't feel the same way. I just thought maybe…forget it. I should have never said anything. I'm sorry I ever brought it up."

I was so caught up in my emotions I didn't even notice the tears that had started to fall. I turned my head away from Jake so he couldn't see.

Jake tried to wrap his arms around me but I shrugged him off and ran into the woods. I didn't need his sympathy. It would only make me feel worse.

Once I was what I thought was far enough away I let the tears flow freely. I just needed a few minutes alone to get the heartbreak out of my system then I would be fine.

"Ness? What's going on? Was it something I said?" Jake's voice made me jump. I was obviously wrong about being far enough away. I contemplated running again but Jake was one step ahead of me and blocked my path.

"Come on, Ness. Tell me what's wrong."

"I'm fine, Jake…really. I just….I got my hopes up…and…well…I shouldn't have! It was stupid for me…to assume you would…would…feel the same way." I was sobbing. I tried to look away again. I didn't want Jake to see me like that.

Jake caught my chin in his hand and forced me to look at him. Slowly he used his other hand to wipe away my tears. I couldn't understand why he wouldn't just let this go. The heat of his skin against my cheeks wasn't making it any easier to _not_ want him.

"I never said I didn't feel the same way, Ness. All I said was that I wanted to make sure you had really thought things though, and that this is what you really wanted. Judging by your response I think it's safe to say you know what you want. And, Ness, I want it too."

I was pretty sure I was dreaming. I blinked my eyes a few times in attempt to wake up. When that didn't work I figured I must be imagining things. Either that or Jake just said he _did_ feel the same way.

"But…what about what you said back in the clearing? You said you didn't think things could change." I was still convinced I was not hearing things clearly. I didn't want to get my hopes up again for nothing.

"I was just surprised, Ness. I always hoped things would lead us in this direction. But I never thought it would happen this fast. I thought you would need a lot more time to figure things out. Especially after what you showed me after you learned about the imprint. But, if you're sure about this, and you're ready to take things to a new level, then I'm ready too."

I smiled. "I meant everything I showed you, Jake. I don't know when it happened, or what triggered my feelings to change, but I'm falling in love with you."

"So does that mean I can officially call you my girlfriend now? Because I would love to do just that."

I loved the way that word sounded coming out of Jake's mouth, and the way his eyes lit up when he said it made me realize he really meant it. Before I knew it the tears started falling again. Only this time they were tears of happiness.

"Hey, Ness, don't cry babe! I would hate to think I made you cry twice in one night."

I laughed. "They are good tears I promise. I'm just so excited that this is really happening."

As Jake wiped my tears away for the second time that night I got the sudden urge to make things official. I looked into Jake's eyes and slowly brought my face towards his. I closed my eyes and prepared myself for the feeling of his lips against mine for the first time. My heart beat with anticipation.

At the last second, my nerves got the best of me and I turned my head down quickly. The result was painful; my forehead hit Jake's.

"Ouch!" My eyes popped open and my hand flew to my forehead. Jake started laughing, and I started blushing.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Jake. I've never done this before. God, I am so embarrassed!" I wanted to run and hide again.

"Hey, it's ok! We've all had our first kiss nightmares. If you want a good laugh, ask your mom about mine sometime." Jake was still laughing and it was killing my confidence. Talking about my mom and the fact that he had kissed _her_ wasn't helping either. To top it all off my head was really starting to hurt. Jake noticed my mood shift.

"Ness, I'm sorry hun. Come here." He wrapped me in a hug. "I didn't mean to make you feel bad. Trust me, the last thing I want right now is to make you cry…again. How's your head?"

"It hurts!" I whined into Jake's shoulder.

I could hear the smile in Jake's voice. "Well, it wouldn't be the first time I was accused of being hard headed. Here, I know what will make it feel better."

Jake brought his hand up to my chin again and tilted my head up before leaning down and kissing my forehead. He was right, my head instantly felt better.

"Now, let's try this again, huh?" Jake smiled down at me.

The butterflies in my stomach were back, but this time I wasn't going to let them get the best me. I pushed back the lump in my throat and took a deep breath to try to slow my erratic breathing. Even that didn't stop the way my heart was pounding. If I didn't know any better I would have expected it to jump right out of my chest. The knot in my stomach tightened as Jake began to lean towards me.

Jake was taller than me, so I raised myself up on my tip toes and wrapped my arms around his neck. I entwined my fingers into the short hair at the base of his neck and pulled him towards me.

Jake's hand that had been resting on my chin brushed across my cheek and down my neck leaving a trail of heat where ever it made contact with my skin. It came to a stop just above my shoulder, where Jake's thumb traced small circles in the sensitive spot at the base of my neck. I shuddered with pleasure and desire burned inside me. I closed my eyes and tilted my head slightly. This time the only thing I felt was fire as Jake's lips ghosted over my own. Electricity shot through every part of my body. It was amazing.

Jake's hands slid down my arms to my hips and pulled me closer. I could feel his heart beating against my chest; it's quick pace telling me that he wanted this as much as I did. The heat from his body radiated out and surrounded my entire being.

I felt his hot breath on my lips as he deepened the kiss. I let him take the lead as he parted my lips slightly with his own and ran his tongue across the front of my lips. My movements became almost frantic as I hungered for more. Jake allowed my tongue to explore his mouth and dance with his own. I had never tasted anything sweeter. I was barely aware of anything that wasn't Jake. My heart continued to thump in my chest and my pulse quickened as I lost myself in his kiss.

Jake slid his arms down to the small of my back and pulled me impossibly closer to him. I was flush against him and my body molded with his as I melted into his embrace.

All too soon it was over and Jake pulled away. A new desire burned in his dark eyes, a desire for me. I smiled at the fact that I had done that to him. I wondered if my want was as apparent as his. I could still feel the heat lingering on my lips, and I longed to press my mouth to his again.

"You don't know how long I have waited for that." Jake's smile was the biggest I had ever seen. I was sure mine mirrored his exactly. I stared into his eyes and wanted nothing more than to get lost in them forever.

Our trance was broken when the alarm on Jake's phone went off. Jake rolled his eyes and pulled it out of his pocket.

"Sorry, Ness. Times up. I have to meet Embry in 15 minutes."

I sighed. I was not ready for this night to end.

"Can we run home? It will take less time than driving, plus then you don't have to bring your car back here." I grinned mischievously. "More importantly we can spend a few more minutes alone."

"I think I can agree to that." Jake wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his chest.

His hot breath in my ear gave me chills as he leaned over and whispered into my ear. "I know we just started this whole relationship thing, and I hope this doesn't scare you, but I am so in love with you already. I just wanted you to know that."

"I love you too, Jake. This is the most perfect night I have ever had. I can't wait to see what the future holds; as long as I get to spend it with you."

I reached up and brought Jake's face down to mine for one more short kiss. I didn't think I would ever get tired of how his lips felt against mine.

Jake let out a sigh of satisfaction.

"Alright, we better go. If I'm late for patrols because I was too busy kissing you, Embry will never forgive me. As it is, he is already going to be upset that you're all that's on my mind."

I had forgotten all about Embry. This was going to kill him. He was already having a hard enough time with Seth imprinting. I stepped back and grabbed Jake's hand.

"Do you think he's going to be okay?"

Jake smiled but it didn't hit his eyes like it had a few minutes earlier. "Yeah, he's strong, so he'll make it. It's just going to take awhile. Once he get's Leah out of his mind, things will be much easier. I just wish there was a way to make _her_ see what it did to him when she left. Maybe it would knock some sense into her and make her come back."

"I'm sorry if all this makes it worse. I didn't mean to make it even harder for him." My gaze shifted to the ground.

"Don't blame yourself, Ness. I'm glad you told me this tonight. I think both of us may have gone crazy if you kept it in. And like I said, Embry's strong. He'll be fine. Now, I really should get you home." He smiled like he suddenly got a brilliant idea.

"I know that look…what are you thinking?"

"Well, I was just thinking that I'm much faster as a wolf. How about I give you a _ride_ home?"

I laughed. "Sounds perfect!" I hadn't ridden Jake since I was a kid. Once I figured out I could beat him on foot it wasn't as much fun anymore.

Jake ran into the forest and came back a few minutes later as the russet brown wolf. He crouched down and allowed me to climb onto his back. I leaned forward and put my arms around his massive neck, grabbing at his fur to secure my hold. Moments later the wind whipped through my hair as we ran through the forest.

As we got closer to my parents cottage, I projected an image to Jake to let him know that I wanted to say goodbye in person. He slowed down and allowed me to jump off before running behind the tree line to phase.

I smiled as the man I now knew I was in love with reemerged from the trees. I ran to him and jumped into his waiting arms.

"Thanks, Jake, that was a lot of fun. And thank you again for such a wonderful night." I looked up and my eyes locked with his perfect brown ones.

"I love you, Ness. Goodnight."

Jake leaned towards me to give me one last good night kiss, but before our lips even met my father's voice boomed from behind us.

"Jacob Black, get your hands off my daughter!"

...

**AN: *ducks quickly as things come flying at her* Cliffy...sorry! You will just have to wait to see what happens! hehe! Hopefully once again it won't be too long! ;-) What did you think of the "special scene" aka the kiss? That was the first kissing scene I have ever written so I would love to get some feedback on how you thought it was! Good OR Bad! Oh and I started something new last chapter that was sort of a surprise/afterthought! All reviews get teasers of the next chapter(Although it won't happen right away since I have to WRITE the next chapter first ;-) but it will happen! I promise!)**

**And here is the other new thing I started last Chapter...Up Next: Chapter 12: Renesmee: Dealing with Dad(Cause you didn't see THAT coming) ;-P**


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